Fear, anger and enthusiasm about the European Union: Effects of emotional reactions on public preferences towards European integration

TY - JOUR

T1 - Fear, anger and enthusiasm about the European Union

T2 - Effects of emotional reactions on public preferences towards European integration

AU - Vasilopoulou, Sofia

AU - Wagner, Markus

N1 - © The Author(s) 2017. This is an author-produced version of the published paper. Uploaded in accordance with the publisher’s self-archiving policy. Further copying may not be permitted; contact the publisher for details.

PY - 2017

Y1 - 2017

N2 - How do emotions affect public opinion on the European Union? This article advances existing literature that focuses on cue-taking, utilitarianism and identity by arguing that emotional reactions are important to understanding citizen attitudes towards the European Union. This is because discrete emotions such as fear, anger and enthusiasm affect how individuals deal with threats and how they seek out, process and use information. We hypothesise that, compared to anxious citizens, those angry with the European Union are more likely to wish to leave the European Union, less receptive to cost–benefit considerations, and less nuanced in their opinions about integration. Our analyses, carried out using a survey conducted in the UK in April 2015, support our hypotheses. These results help us predict the effectiveness of political strategies, e.g. in referendum campaigns.

AB - How do emotions affect public opinion on the European Union? This article advances existing literature that focuses on cue-taking, utilitarianism and identity by arguing that emotional reactions are important to understanding citizen attitudes towards the European Union. This is because discrete emotions such as fear, anger and enthusiasm affect how individuals deal with threats and how they seek out, process and use information. We hypothesise that, compared to anxious citizens, those angry with the European Union are more likely to wish to leave the European Union, less receptive to cost–benefit considerations, and less nuanced in their opinions about integration. Our analyses, carried out using a survey conducted in the UK in April 2015, support our hypotheses. These results help us predict the effectiveness of political strategies, e.g. in referendum campaigns.

KW - Anger

KW - Euroscepticism

KW - emotional reactions

KW - enthusiasm

KW - fear

U2 - 10.1177/1465116517698048

DO - 10.1177/1465116517698048

M3 - Article

SN - 1465-1165

VL - 18

SP - 382

EP - 405

JO - European union politics

JF - European union politics

IS - 3

ER -