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Public support for E uropean defence: Does strategic culture matter?
Author(s) -
Irondelle† Bastien,
Mérand Frédéric,
Foucault Martial
Publication year - 2015
Publication title -
european journal of political research
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 3.267
H-Index - 95
eISSN - 1475-6765
pISSN - 0304-4130
DOI - 10.1111/1475-6765.12090
Subject(s) - eurobarometer , typology , national security , explanatory power , public opinion , globalism , political science , power (physics) , sociology , public administration , economics , law , politics , european union , international trade , epistemology , philosophy , physics , quantum mechanics , anthropology
This article identifies previously ignored determinants of public support for the E uropean U nion's security and defence ambitions. In contrast to public opinion vis‐à‐vis the EU in general, the literature on attitudes towards a putative E uropean army or the existing Common Security and Defence Policy ( CSDP ) suggests that the explanatory power of sociodemographic and economic variables is weak, and focuses instead on national identity as the main determinant of one's support. This article explores the possible impact of strategic culture, and argues that preferences vis‐à‐vis the EU 's security and defence ambitions are formed in part through pre‐existing social representations of security. To test this proposition, ‘national’ strategic cultures are disaggregated and a typology is produced that contains four strategic postures: pacifism, traditionalism, humanitarianism and globalism. Applying regression analysis on individual‐level Eurobarometer survey data, it is found that strategic postures help explain both the general level of support for CSDP and support for specific P etersberg tasks.