Breaking Down Public Opinion on European Integration: On the Multidimensionality of Swiss-EU Relations

Over the last decades, public opinion on European integration has grown in political importance. To date, studies on Euroscepticism and European integration have predominantly been concerned with explaining whether citizens are generally in favor of or against further European integration. However, European integration has largely shifted away from a simple yes or no question. Rather, it has become a multifaceted process that affects various issues of supranational integration and political cooperation. It is therefore important to understand how citizens evaluate different integration issues, to what extent they support closer cooperation with the EU, and in which policy domains. The bilateral relationship between the EU and Switzerland serves as a unique example to study citizens’ opinions because it is characterized by a variety of policy-specific integration aspects that are time and again contested in the Swiss direct-democratic arena. The analyses will draw on data collected in the framework of the Swiss Election Study (Selects). They first shed light on differences in support levels for various aspects of the Swiss-EU relations. Second, using latent profile analysis, the article identifies groups of citizens that share similarities in their support and opposition patterns regarding these aspects. Finally, it explains the drivers of adherence to these different groups. I argue that not only European integration itself is multidimensional but also explanations of citizens’ support of this process. Because of the risen importance the cultural dimension plays in political conflicts, I expect more opposition to European integration issues that are rather cultural than economic in nature.