Brexit, the rise of populist parties, and bitter disputes over EU solidarity during the Covid-19 pandemic all point to the same underlying tension: the EU has accumulated enormous political authority. Yet many Europeans still do not feel European. Their political identity remains tied to their nation, not to the Union.

Is this true? And what does the dynamic relationship between EU institution building and collective identity mean for the future of European integration?

The central theories of European integration offer contrasting views on the link between EU institutions and Euroepan identity. Some predict that shared institutions eventually produce shared identities. In other words, living under common rules and policies gradually builds a sense of belonging together. Others argue the opposite: identity shapes what kind of integration is politically possible, and pushing integration too far can provoke resistance and backlash. Neither view fully captures what we observe in the real world.

EUDENTIFY takes a different approach. We argue that the relationship between EU institutions and European identity is not one-directional. It runs both ways, and it plays out differently depending on the policy area and the historical moment. Understanding when and why these different dynamics occur is at the heart of what we do.

To answer these questions, EUDENTIFY asks three things:

(1)       What explains variation in how EU institutions and European identity influence each other?

(2)       Does European institution building shape collective identity?

(3)       Does collective identity impact European institution building?

Answering these questions required new data. We developed EUID, the first measure that tracks European identity consistently across 50 years, 28 countries, and more than 3 million survey respondents. By combining multiple major survey projects and using advanced statistical methods, we can now study long-term trends and turning points that were simply invisible before.

The result is the first unified framework for understanding the institutions-identity link in Europe - one grounded in rigorous evidence and capable of explaining not just integration, but also the disintegration we see today.

Funding:

This research project is funded by a personal VIDI grant of the Dutch Research Council (€800.000; 2022-2027) awarded to Theresa Kuhn.