Public Opinion in Multi-Level Governance

• In Event: Nothing Compares 2 EU: Support and Skepticism for the EU

Abstract

How does clarity of responsibility affect the opinions of citizens of the European Union about the EU and national governments? To investigate this, we conduct a survey experiment with a nationally representative sample from eight European countries to examine the role of information about responsibility in different policy domains in shaping individuals' opinions of the EU and their national governments. These domains are carefully selected to represent different points along the continuum of EU and national government competencies and are also reflective of a two-dimensional policy space that spans economic and cultural considerations. This approach is designed to create varied scenarios that uncover complex patterns of attribution. We argue that ideological and identity factors significantly affect how citizens update their beliefs about attributing credit or blame to different levels of government and subsequently affect their opinions of the EU and national governments. This study has important implications for understanding the dynamics of public opinion formation in multi-level governance systems such as the EU.

Authors

• Hongyi She, University of Rochester

• Chendi Wang, Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam