The community is reeling from a recent turn of events. - Research reveals heightened attachment to the European Union.
Crises like the Eurozone turmoil, the Coronavirus pandemic, and the Ukraine War have intensified EU citizens' devotion to the European Union, contrary to assumptions that these events would weaken their feelings of attachment, a recent study by the Universities of Saarland and Marburg discovered.
Researchers assessed the sentiments of 600,000 Europeans in 27 different countries from 1991 to 2023 from the "Eurobarometer" survey, where respondents rate their affiliation to the EU on a 1-4 scale. The study uncovered that the sense of jointness within the union has escalated, regardless of age and generation. It appears that younger EU citizens, who are used to a more interconnected state, experience the same level of connection as their older counterparts.
While the financial crises of the Euro and state debt formerly dampened peoples' sentiments, the uptrend in positive feelings has been ongoing since 2013. The scientists speculate that the European countries were united during these crises against an "external enemy" instead of being divided. This theory was put forth in the study published in the "Journal of European Public Policy."
News Release by Saarland University
Link to the Study
