Public opinion

The Public Opinion section publishes analyses on attitudes towards the EU and the integration process gathered from single-country and cross-national surveys. In particular, the contributions of this section focus on orientations over the most contentious social and political conflicts dividing European voters and EU Member States and preferences towards policies and initiatives strengthening the European Social Union.

5 March 2022

Transnationalism fosters more engagement in European politics

By Anna Kyriazi and Francesco Visconti

How often do you discuss European Union (EU) political matters with others? Do you feel that your voice counts in the way the EU conducts its business? Did you vote in the latest elections for the European Parliament (EP)?
In a newly published article, we explain that the way people answer these questions depends, in part, on the extent to which they live their lives “across” the national borders of EU member states. Transnational citizens are more likely to engage in such forms of political behaviour.

4 February 2022

European solidarity at a crossroads. REScEU Mass Survey 2019.

By Niccolo Donati, Alessandro Pellegata and Francesco Visconti

This REScEU Mass Survey Report analyses the relevant results of a public opinion survey conducted in a sample of ten EU member states – Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Italy, the Netherlands, Poland, Spain, Sweden – in July 2019, just after the European Parliament (EP) elections held in May 2019.

1 June 2020

Italian citizens and the COVID-19 pandemic: the safeguard of health, the economy and the role for EU solidarity

By euvisions

The survey aimed at exploring Italian citizens’ opinions during the period in which the COVID-19 pandemic was at its peak. The underlying themes are the trade-offs between the safeguard of health, the economy and individual freedom, in their interplay with EU solidarity and the evaluation of the government’s policies.

12 February 2019

To perceive and to believe: misperceptions about immigration and European solidarity

By Francesco Visconti

Misperception of immigration numbers has changed across time, but continues to endure among European citizens. Misperception is linked to Eurosceptic preferences and restrictive immigration policies.

9 November 2018

Public support for Social Europe: A versatile reality

By Sharon Baute

To get the full picture of what specific designs of Social Europe are politically viable and legitimate, knowledge is needed on whether citizens’ interpretations of Social Europe are similar or vary across EU member states.

17 September 2018

Refugees and individual solidarity: Social beliefs, political-ideological orientations and social traits

By Nicola Maggini

Socio-political tendencies and education both affect whether European citizens choose to show solidarity for refugees

26 June 2018

Against Euroscepticism: practice, don’t preach the EU

By Alessandro Pellegata and Francesco Visconti

This article elaborates the multidimensional concept of “EU-politanism”, which refers to respondent’s connections with citizens of other countries and their familiarity with the EU context. In recent Italian elections, voters with EU-politan experiences expressed less extreme positions on the EU and immigration.

18 May 2018

The winners and losers of globalisation in the Italian elections

By Alessandro Pellegata and Francesco Visconti

The recent Italian elections provide evidence of a political conflict between the winners and losers of globalisation. The latter tend to be more hostile to the EU and the Euro, more chauvinist and more likely to vote for Eurosceptic parties.

16 April 2018

Understanding the Italian vote: a matter of policy agendas

By Alessandro Pellegata and Francesco Visconti

Voter’s agendas suggest unemployment remains the most pressing problem, while immigration is becoming more important compared to previous elections. The polarisation of the issue of immigration played a central role in this year’s electoral campaign and is reflected in the public’s attitude towards the EU.

12 March 2018

National elites and EU economic governance: the art of cherry-picking solidarity

By Luca Verzichelli and Francesco Marangoni

Politicians still tend to support consensual solutions to the problems of EU economy. However, a polarization is emerging across countries and, above all, across parties. Moreover, being supportive of some kind of burden sharing does not necessarily mean being ready to delegate the economic policies to the EU institutions

1 2 Next »

«The COVID crisis pitted ‘frugal’ countries in Northern Europe, sceptical of sharing risks with economically weaker member states, against a group of countries that vocally called for fiscal solidarity. While this has revived divisions that we had already seen 10 years ago, this time the pro-fiscal solidarity coalition has grown bigger. »

Public opinion

Public opinion

Subscribe to our newsletter