Transformation of German-European Identity in the Euro-Zone Crisis: Empirical Study of Public Opinion in Germany

  • Abstract:

    Has the euro zone crisis, which has began in 2010, already had some influence on the transformation of the relatively stable relationship between national and European dimension of German collective identity? If yes, then what kind of transformation is it? Can one observe rising instillation of ‘European values’ in German national identity or widening gap between sense of Germanness and Europeanness? In other words, is the complementarity of German national and European identity increasing or declining in the context of the current crisis? On the one hand, the issue of European integration gained immensely on salience thanks to the unprecedented media attention which could lead to strengthening of European dimension of German collective identity. On the other hand, there is quite a significant opposition to the financial help to peripheral member states in German public opinion which could be interpreted as weakening of the sense of mutual European solidarity and European dimension of German collective identity. The main research questions of this contribution are whether the euro zone crisis has already had an impact on the perception of the relationship between national and European dimension of the collective identity in German public opinion and whether this relationship is becoming more or less complementary. The research is based on the quantitative data from attitudinal surveys and its proper interpretation following from the appropriate set of statistical analyses (logistic regression etc.).