Attachment to the EU and Contestation: It’s About Economics and Life Expectations

This analysis examines how the Euro-crisis and recent contested debates have affected young people’s attachment to the EU. Citizens seem to feel more European (EB81 2014), but the EU may need to deliver, in particular at the EU economic level and toward future life expectations. As noted in the case of Poland well educated young people can perceive that their hopes toward the future are kicked back by the old generation, and opportunities may not be met. Young people therefore can feel European, but that is not sufficient to be mobilized to vote at EP elections, as in the case of Croatia in the accession referendum in 2012. Croats expected benefits from EU membership and joining the EU definitely improved the economic and trade power of the country and standard of living, but there are still challenges ahead, as unemployment and social inequalities (EB81 2014). ‘Explicit identification’, as defined by Cram (2012) seems to make the difference, when the EU has a significant impact on people’s life and when some benefits are under threat, this can determine identification and support, as engagement and participation. This paper addresses how the EU can start working on increasing level of identification across young people to create bonds of solidarity as auspicated in previous research and in order to meet the future of citizens’ life expectations, a significant factor on young people’s attachment towards the EU.