Perceptions of a Shared European Culture Increase the Support for the European Union

Abstract

There is disagreement amongst political theorists as to whether a European demos based on a culturally grounded identity as a precondition for a stronger integration of the European Union (EU) exists. We study a part of this question from a constructivist perspective by analysing how individuals in Europe perceive European culture and how this perception is related to support for the EU. We focus on the following questions: (a) whether European respondents perceive a shared European culture, (b) whether they consider this culture to be of higher value than other cultures and (c) whether they are proud of European cultures. We study these questions on the basis of a survey conducted in 2021 in nine European countries, including both EU and non-EU countries. Our results show that the perception of a shared European culture and its positive evaluation, both inclusive and exclusive, covary positively with support for the EU.