Support for the European Union in Central and Eastern Europe before and after Accession

Abstract

Soutien à l’Union européenne en Europe centrale et orientale avant et après l’adhésion: une comparaison des différentes raisons Cet article a pour objectif d’analyser les différentes attitudes de soutien envers l’Union européenne au sein de huit États membres de l’Europe centrale et orientale avant et après leurs adhésions. Pour ce faire, l’étude se focalise sur trois types de facteurs explicatifs: les raisons instrumentales, les adhésions normatives et l’expression des sentiments. Dès lors, à partir d’une série d’analyse de régressions multiples, utilisant les données Eurobaromètres de 2003 à 2006, nous montrons dans quelle mesure les raisons instrumentales de soutien tendent à diminuer en tant que facteur explicatif après l’adhésion tandis que le poids explicatif des considérations normatives et expressives reste stable. Nous concluons ainsi à la nécessité de ne pas sous-estimer la place des normes et des sentiments dans la compréhension des attitudes de soutien vis-à-vis de l’Union européenne.

Senior Citizens and the European Union. A Romanian Perspective

“…In different words, when assessing Romania's EU membership, the great majority of the respondents see it as a good thing, particularly due to pragmatic reasons. Similar to other studies that focus on attitudinal sources of support for the EU in countries that benefitted from the transition from communism to post-communism (Schlenker, 2012), our paper confirms that instrumental calculations tend to remain key explanatory factors of Romanians' generalized euro-optimism and to outweigh other affective reasons for EU support. Relatedly, this paper shows that the utilitarian evaluation of the national economy is not necessarily a main driver of seniors' positive attitudes towards the EU.…”

“…A significant percent of the Romanian respondents (72%) was distrustful in the national government, the situation being similar to that in Bulgaria, where the mistrust in the main institutions of the state reached 67% (EB 67, 2007). The high level of distrust in national institutions was a predictor for the high level of trust in the EU, similar to other CEE countries (Schlenker, 2012;Ilonszki, 2009;Tãnãsoiu & Colonescu, 2008;Tverdova & Anderson, 2004). In different words, in 2007 the Romanians were among the most optimistic Europeans along with the Latvians and the Estonians.…”

“…Citizens' attitudes towards the EU have been a constant source of inquiry for both scholars and European officials, as they have become increasingly important in shaping the European project (Schlenker, 2012;Boomgaarden et al, 2011;Hooghe & Marks, 2009;Gabel, 2003). The studies of public opinion have largely demonstrated that how people feel and think about the European issues influences their behaviour and actions, the Brexit vote being only the most recent example of popular dissatisfaction with a globalized society (Pettifor, 2017), as well as a form of self-protection against EU powers (Tarran, 2016).Thus, at a time when the European Union is faced with serious challenges, the study of public attitudes towards the EU, their mechanisms and sources becomes a significant and pragmatic effort, since the public has the means to act based on its feelings of support or opposition regarding the European project.…”

“…In other words, "favourable economic payoffs" are commonly seen as preconditions of stronger ties of loyalties for the supranational institutions, tending to outweigh other emotional reasons for supporting the EU. The academic literature has largely demonstrated that economic benefits associated with membership in the EU are crucial for explaining variance in the degree of EU support (Schlenker, 2012;Hooghe & Marks, 2005). Yet, scholars have also admitted that public opinion about a complex structure such as the EU is highly likely to be based upon various and multidimensional factors and dispositions (Bosch & Newton, 1998).…”

“…the elderly, unemployed, long-term ill and those with disabilities) view the EU with scepticism whereas the privileged strata of society (e.g. the managers, owners of business, professionals, white-collar workers, Erasmus students) express pro-European attitudes (Schlenker, 2012;Negrea, 2011;Fligstein, 2009;Moravcsik, 2002). Nevertheless, what seems to matter even more than people's default categorization as winners or losers of integration is their perception over the costs and benefits emerging from EU membership -whether people think that the EU has brought them personally more advantages than burdens.…”