Social Equality and Democracy in Times of Economic Crisis: How European Economic Governance affects Perceptions of Social Cohesion and Political Support

This paper aims at scrutinizing the impact of citizens’ evaluation of European economic governance compared to national economic governance on individual assessments of social (in)equality in particular and support for a democratic regime more generally. Drawing on the latest wave of the European Social Survey (released in autumn 2013), I will conduct a multilevel analysis and juxtapose the impact of objective macro level indicators of income inequality, social spending, unemployment rates and economic growth with the effect of individual perceptions of whether national or supranational economic governance is held accountable on individual assessments of social (in)equality and democratic legitimacy. The political consequences for the project of European integration will be further discussed.