How do people feel about the Euro? What shapes those opinions - economic arguments, national identity, or a sense of belonging to Europe?
These are the core questions behind the CIVICA-funded research project “Revisiting the effects of European (vs. national) identities on attitudes towards the Euro” (EUR_IDENT). Launched in 2024, the project explores how European identity, national identity, and global identity influence public attitudes towards the Euro and European integration.
Bringing together researchers from the Stockholm School of Economics, SGH Warsaw School of Economics, and IE University, EUR_IDENT is part of CIVICA’s Europe Revisited priority area.
At a time when several EU countries, including Sweden and Poland, have not yet adopted the Euro, and public opinion remains divided, this research offers timely and policy-relevant insights.
Understanding attitudes toward the Euro is not only about economics. It is also about identity, belonging, and trust. The EUR_IDENT project highlights that European identity remains a powerful psychological driver of support for the Euro. By uncovering the mechanisms behind these attitudes, the research provides valuable insights for academics, policymakers, and communication professionals working on the future of Europe.
What is the EUR_IDENT research project?
EUR_IDENT investigates how different layers of identity, European, national, and global, shape attitudes towards the Euro. While public debate on the Euro often focuses on economic arguments, previous research has suggested that identity plays a crucial role. However, most earlier studies were correlational and conducted during the early years of the Euro, leaving open questions about causal mechanisms and contemporary relevance.
The research includes two complementary studies:
Study 1 (correlational): Large-scale surveys conducted in Sweden and Poland, with Spain originally included in the design.
Study 2 (experimental): Ongoing data collection aimed at testing whether activating European identity can causally influence Euro attitudes.
What has EUR_IDENT achieved so far?
The project team has completed data collection and analysis for Study 1 in Sweden and Poland and is currently preparing conference papers based on these results. Data collection for Study 2 is ongoing in both countries.
The project has already secured international visibility:
One paper presentation has been accepted for the CIVICA conference at SGH Warsaw School of Economics in April.
A second presentation has been accepted for the Annual Conference of UACES (University Association for Contemporary European Studies), to be held in Prague in September.
The team is currently preparing conference papers and working towards submitting a journal article. They are also considering follow-up funding to expand the project to more countries.
Key findings: Identity matters, but not all identities in the same way
The results from Sweden and Poland strongly support the researchers’ pre-registered model.
1. European Identity Increases Support for the Euro
People who see being European as an important part of who they are are more likely to:
Feel connected to people who use the Euro,
Hold more positive economic beliefs about the Euro,
Trust EU institutions more,
And ultimately have more favourable attitudes towards the Euro.
In simple terms: the stronger the European identity, the more positive the attitude towards the Euro.
2. Global Identity Has a Similar - But Weaker - Effect
People who identify as “global citizens” also tend to hold more positive Euro attitudes. However, this effect is weaker than for European identity. This suggests that specifically European identification plays a unique and stronger role.
3. National Identity Shows Negative or No Effects
In contrast, strong national identity (for example, identifying strongly as Polish or Swedish) was associated with either negative or null relationships with Euro-related attitudes.
This does not mean national identity is inherently opposed to European integration, but it suggests that identity tensions may influence how people evaluate the common currency.
The current stage of the research
Study 1 (correlational) has been completed in Sweden and Poland, with extended structural equation analyses providing additional robustness checks and deeper insight into the relationships among identity constructs, economic beliefs, trust, and Euro attitudes.
Study 2 (experimental) is currently in progress in Sweden and Poland. This phase aims to establish clearer causal evidence by experimentally activating European identity and testing whether such activation influences Euro attitudes and related mediators.
How the CIVICA framework has advanced the project
According to the research team, CIVICA funding has been crucial in enabling large-scale data collection and cross-country collaboration.
The project has strengthened cooperation between researchers at the Stockholm School of Economics, SGH Warsaw School of Economics, and IE University. It has also facilitated participation in international conferences and workshops.
