Generational differences in the identification of Europeans: the role of the great recession

Abstract

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This paper focuses on analyzing European identification through the exploration of generational differences. The idea that young people are more pro-European than older people is widely accepted in both academia and popular discourse. However, this paper goes further and explores whether such differences exist in both affective and cognitive dimensions of European identification. It is argued that while young people broadly take the European Union (EU) as a given and identify as Europeans, earlier generations who lived through the Second World War and the post-war period, define the European project in a more idealistic way, which could result in greater emotional attachment. Additionally, this article aims to test whether the Great Recession has had an impact on young people’s identification, as this cohort was most negatively impacted by the crisis. Using survey data from the Eurobarometer, the results highlight the contextual variation in European identification and the relevance of distinguishing between affective and cognitive dimensions when we explore the life-cycle and generational effects.