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In the last decades, the concept of European identity has become increasingly important in various scientific disciplines. In social sciences, several scholars have demonstrated the relationship between participation in international mobility programmes and European identity. Social interactions between people from different countries could indeed create or enhance a sense of belongingness to EU. In addition to direct contacts, ideological factors, as the political orientation, relate to identification and emotional attachment to EU. Some studies have also observed that the European identity seemed to be linked to the individual’s satisfaction with the EU action. The aim of the present research was to investigate the relationships among the participation in international mobility programmes during high school and university (Erasmus programme), European identity, and the satisfaction with EU measures during the COVID-19 pandemic. The data of the present study were collected on a sample of 516 Italian university students (62.8% females; mean age 22.7, SD=1.63) through a self-report survey online. The participation in international mobility programmes was positively related to the European social identity. Moreover, the European identity was positively related to the satisfaction with EU measures against COVID-19 pandemic and negatively related to the right-wing political orientation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Israel's war on Gaza following 7 October 2023 has given birth to several political and social changes in European nations. According to the United Nations Report of the Special Rapporteur, Israel has used this moment to "distort" international humanitarian law principles "in an attempt to legitimize genocidal violence against the Palestinian people." In the European context, this has led to European Muslims and non-Muslims, including organizations, institutions, as well as individual academics, politicians, and activists mobilizing and voicing their condemnation and demand their governments to do more towards peaceful and equitable solutions. However, this has been met with a strong reaction from European governing bodies. This paper situates this reaction within wider discourses on the European Muslim crisis. It begins with a systematic literature review on the so-called European Muslim crisis, followed by case studies on the United Kingdom and Germany on their respective changes to policies impacting Muslims in the post-October 7 contexa Regarding the literature review, this paper illustrates how this concept has three distinct, yet intersecting meanings: the crisis of European identity; the crisis of foundational ideologies of Europe; and an internal Muslim crisis that often leads to radicalization. Through the British and German case studies, this paper illustrates that October 7 has reinforced and strengthened the shift towards values-based citizenship and integration. This paper argues that through branding pro-Palestine protesters and organizations as extremists in the British context, and adding questions related to antisemitism and Israel in the citizenship tests in the German context, the Israel/Palestine issue has now become yet another yardstick to demarcate the European, civilized "us" vs. the Muslim "other." In doing so, October 7 has escalated elements already present within the wider discourses of the European Muslim crisis. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

European identity among youth remains under-studied despite having the potential to promote inclusive benefits. Through a rapid evidence assessment (REA), this paper addresses two aims. First, it synthesises definitions of European identity among children, adolescents and young adults through thematic analysis, and summarises measurements. Second, it summarises the constructs associated with European identity among youth, providing a broad overview of existing research. Based on thematic analysis, European identity is operationally defined as a complex identity with which youth may choose to identify, uniting people based on a diverse range of factors but acknowledging the diversity of national roots and, in turn, affording benefits due to the sense of belonging it provides. School-based interventions and curricula, knowledge about Europe and the EU, political trust, benefits of the EU, and cross-border experiences, along with enhanced intergroup attitudes and civic engagement, are associated with stronger European identification. Avenues for future research are identified, including the need for a developmentally appropriate measure of European identity, the investigation of its relationship with other constructs, and exploring the potential of curricular interventions to promote the inclusive aspects of European identity on a national scale, particularly among younger pupils. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Cultural memory plays a crucial role in the formation and consolidation of European identity. Europe’s common cultural heritage, influenced by classical antiquity, Christianity, the Renaissance, and the Enlightenment, also encompasses the ethical lessons of the two world wars and the totalitarian regimes of the 20th century. This study explores how shared values and traditions contribute to the sense of European belonging and cohesion. Cultural policies and contemporary initiatives that support the intercultural dialogue and strengthen the common cultural memory highlight the importance in the context of a diverse but united Europe. Addressing cultural memory based on European values such as humanism, tolerance, and democracy in the Republic of Moldova is both a challenge and an essential goal in the process of consolidating European cultural identity.

European identity among youth remains under-studied despite having the potential to promote inclusive benefits. Through a rapid evidence assessment (REA), this paper addresses two aims. First, it synthesises definitions of European identity among children, adolescents and young adults through thematic analysis, and summarises measurements. Second, it summarises the constructs associated with European identity among youth, providing a broad overview of existing research. Based on thematic analysis, European identity is operationally defined as a complex identity with which youth may choose to identify, uniting people based on a diverse range of factors but acknowledging the diversity of national roots and, in turn, affording benefits due to the sense of belonging it provides. School-based interventions and curricula, knowledge about Europe and the EU, political trust, benefits of the EU, and cross-border experiences, along with enhanced intergroup attitudes and civic engagement, are associated with stronger European identification. Avenues for future research are identified, including the need for a developmentally appropriate measure of European identity, the investigation of its relationship with other constructs, and exploring the potential of curricular interventions to promote the inclusive aspects of European identity on a national scale, particularly among younger pupils.

The question of whether there is increasing social integration among EU citizens in Europe as a spill ‑over effect of the ongoing process of system integration, as expected by utilitarian perspectives on integration, has been discussed in many contri‑ butions so far. In particular, the question of how the economic strength and develop‑ ment of macro ‑units affects European social integration has gained new momentum after the 2004 enlargement, when economically weaker ECE countries became part of the EU. In this contribution, I focus on the impact of regional economic strength and development on European social integration. I analyse the relationship between the economic situation and development of NUTS‑1 regions and individual European identity using Eurobarometer data for the years 2004, 2010 and 2015. Using descrip‑ tive and multivariate quantitative approaches, I show that regional economic strength is weakly correlated with European identity, although not significant in multivariate models. However, citizens who believe that the EU is an economic advantage are more likely to identify as Europeans and are more prevalent in regions with higher economic growth. I conclude that convincing citizens of the economic benefits of EU membership could result in increased European social integration in the long run.

Objectives The aim of the article is to discuss the innovative work of Professor Antonio Magliulo, History of European Economic Thought, to indicate thematic areas for further discussion and polemics areas for continuation of his research. Another goal is to highlight several issues and research threads that appear on the pages of the publication, including the question and concept of the birth of Europe. Material and methods Basic research material of the article is the publication of Professor Antonio Magliulo, History of European Economic Thought. The methods used in the article include the analysis of the text itself and its substantive structure, grouping and pointing out several leading questions of the work's narrative, such as European values in the history of economic thought or the concept of the birth of Europe. Results The results of the work were summarised in the conclusions, where the basic guiding ideas have been indicated once again, i.e. European values in the history of economic thought, the concepts of the birth of Europe and the issues of its social and cultural identity perceived in the historical development of European economic thought. The conclusions also identify a number of thematic strands and issues for further discussion and potential polemical areas. Conclusions The main idea of Professor Antoni Magliulo's History of European Economic Thought is going around the issues of European values, which are fundamental for European identity and the resulting concepts in the history of European economic thought.

It is without a doubt that the European continent has a rich history which consists also in a significant number of conflicts between the diverse national, regional and ethnic groups currently inhabiting its territories. The historical events which shaped the modern-day European continent create a unique blend shared across its nations. Clearly, the significant influence of the European Union in the region plays a role in shaping the perceptions of community and identity in such a multicultural environment as the European continent. Multiculturalism and collaboration are the directions in which the Union is leading the European identity. In this regard, it is important to carve out the characteristics which make one to perceive themselves as European first, rather than associating with their nationality. Education as the means to multiculturalism can have a central role in creating such identities and fostering the sentiment of appartenance to an international European community. As the most important means of influencing the educational sphere in the European Union and beyond, the Erasmus+ Program, through its mobilities, has most probably an important role in forming and fostering perceptions amongst participants. We are aiming through this article to review the ideas which characterize what it means to be European, which are the elements defining the European identity and what is the role the Erasmus+ Program in creating and fostering such identity

The article discusses the state of the European Union after 2015, when overlapping crises led to new challenges for the EU, which entailed new political dynamics. As the migration and asylum policy of the Union developed at varying rates and depths, the whole policy became non-symmetrical and hard to coordinate, hence weak in the event of a crisis. This vulnerability was demonstrated during the peak of the 2015 refugee crisis that shook Europe and its security and led to immigration politics and an array of problems. This article is a conceptual paper that addresses a number of issues coming to light after the height of the crisis, including the external border policy, the European identity, concerns about the limitations of the liberal state, the politicisation and securitisation of migration, the framing of immigrants, and the phenomenon of reversing the securitisation of migration, which primarily affected Central and Eastern Europe. The article seeks to answer several questions that highlight the irony of using liberal norms for exclusionary purposes, and the degree to which identity politics and policymaking may progressively transcend and reshape the limitations of the liberal states in Europe.

Abstract The European Union (EU) faces challenges that affect its persistence, including the revival of national populism in many EU member states. Studies have shown that individuals with immigration histories identify less strongly with Europe than individuals without immigration histories. Therefore, fostering a strong identification with Europe is more relevant than ever. This paper will explore the possible historical roots of different levels of identification and examine if differing access to learning opportunities can explain the difference. Drawing on data from the German sample of the International Civic and Citizenship Study 2016, this paper aims to determine the relevance of individual variables and learning opportunities for the development of students’ identification with Europe. Multilevel analyses at individual and classroom level were conducted introducing different independent variables. Results show that having no immigration history from outside the EU, being Christian or atheist, and learning about Europe at school are predictors of a stronger level of identification with Europe. The effect of having an immigration history from outside the EU loses significance when socio-economic status classroom composition is entered into the model. We conclude that differences in identification are not due to different access to learning opportunities, but likely due to personal characteristics.

Migration is one of the most important problems of modern society and is considered not only as a simple mechanical movement of people, but as a complex social process that affects many aspects of public life. Today, migration has acquired a global level, since the nature of migration processes, namely its scale, is the main feature of globalization. Migration processes have an impact on all spheres of public life of countries and regions, as a result of which they leave an imprint in the political, socio-economic and cultural-psychological spheres. As a result, modern countries face a range of consequences, both positive and negative. The study of the impact of migration on the life and development of society in the aggregate of its negative and positive consequences is relevant both at the global level and at the level of individual regions of our country.The object of the research is migration processes of the modern world in the context of globalization. The subject of the research is the consequences of migration processes in European countries and the Russian state. The purpose of the research is to analyze a new migration situation in the world and identify its trends.

Copyright of Journal of Modern Science is the property of Alcide De Gasperi University of Euroregional Economy and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

The article discusses the state of the European Union after 2015, when overlapping crises led to new challenges for the EU, which entailed new political dynamics. As the migration and asylum policy of the Union developed at varying rates and depths, the whole policy became non-symmetrical and hard to coordinate, hence weak in the event of a crisis. This vulnerability was demonstrated during the peak of the 2015 refugee crisis that shook Europe and its security and led to immigration politics and an array of problems. This article is a conceptual paper that addresses a number of issues coming to light after the height of the crisis, including the external border policy, the European identity, concerns about the limitations of the liberal state, the politicisation and securitisation of migration, the framing of immigrants, and the phenomenon of reversing the securitisation of migration, which primarily affected Central and Eastern Europe. The article seeks to answer several questions that highlight the irony of using liberal norms for exclusionary purposes, and the degree to which identity politics and policymaking may progressively transcend and reshape the limitations of the liberal states in Europe. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article is devoted to the study of the peculiarities of the implementation of the principle of "rule of law" in the context of challenges of democracy under the conditions of martial law in Ukraine. The main force majeure decisions of state authorities are outlined within quantitative and chronological limits in the context of ensuring the coherence and continuity of the fulfillment assumed by them obligations, and with unconditional observance of the principle of the rule of law. The efforts of the native legislator to provide a formal definition of the definition of «rule of law» in comparison with its international counterpart, which is enshrined in the soft law documents of the Venice Commission, are separately analyzed. The authors found out that despite the impressive percentage of implementation of the government's Plan of measures to implement the Association Agreement, in Ukraine, under the conditions of martial law, constitutional rights and human freedoms are temporarily restricted, including: the right to inviolability of housing, to freedom of movement, to freedom of thought and speech, to free expression of one's views and beliefs, rights and legitimate interests of legal entities, etc. At the same time, despite the real existence of the listed restrictions, the latter in no way refer to the limitation of absolute (natural) human rights and freedoms. In the conclusions to the article, it is justified and confirmed that the principle of the rule of law continues to apply even to those rights and freedoms that are limited. In order to obtain reliable scientific results and introduce new information to the theory fund, this study used a set of scientific principles and approaches based on general scientific, worldview and special legal methods of cognition, in particular, it refers to such methods as: systemic, hermeneutic, historical - legal, functional and comparative. The empirical basis of the research was made up of national and international legal acts. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The role of culture in the process of Europeanization and supporting the formation of a European identity and a cohesive society has been emphasized by the European institutions since the 2000s. Today, the cultural policies of the EU aim to use culture as a source of soft power to enhance the degree of awareness of the European identity. The New European agenda for culture, the Creative Europe program, through the projects it assists, contributes to strengthening the European identity, providing support for the cultural and creative sectors in line with the priorities of the European Commission for a greener, more digital and more resilient Europe, for European democracy and the promotion of the European way of life. The objective of the European integration of the Republic of Moldova implies the support and implementation of the European cultural policies as a crucial element of strengthening social cohesion for the development of the sense of belonging to the European identity.

The paper focuses on various dimensions of European identity in Polish and Serbian travel writings about Asia in the period from the 1850s to the 1920s, examining several case studies that show how travellers often identified themselves as Europeans, but sometimes discussed various aspects of European identity and had many issues with this self-description. The analysis is based on a large corpus of Polish and Serbian travelogues, but works by Gustaw Olechowski, Karol Lanckoroński, Pavel Petrović, Jerzy Bandrowski, Milan Jovanović, Eugeniusz Romer, Jadwiga Marcinowska and Jelena Dimitrijević are scrutinised in detail. The following issues are discussed: assuming European identity, European identity and planetary consciousness, overcoming Orientalism, the periphery complex, reversed Orientalism and Occidentalism, patriotism, and identification with Asians.

The House of European History in Brussels, Belgium, is a pan-European identity-making institution, created by the European Union. It has sparked an array of scholarship that speaks to the power of the museum, its ability to create a master narrative for the European people, and the varying omissions and choices made in telling Europe’s history. While European Parliament President Hans-Gert Pöttering receives credit for originating the museum, little scholarship speaks to his ideas regarding European Union integration, community, and its identity – even though, elite leader ideas are recognized in nationalism studies as instrumental in the making of an identity. This article fills this gap and shows how Pöttering’s ideas influenced the broad and generalized narrative the House of European History espouses today.

The European Union (EU) faces challenges that affect its persistence, including the revival of national populism in many EU member states. Studies have shown that individuals with immigration histories identify less strongly with Europe than individuals without immigration histories. Therefore, fostering a strong identification with Europe is more relevant than ever. This paper will explore the possible historical roots of different levels of identification and examine if differing access to learning opportunities can explain the difference. Drawing on data from the German sample of the International Civic and Citizenship Study 2016, this paper aims to determine the relevance of individual variables and learning opportunities for the development of students' identification with Europe. Multilevel analyses at individual and classroom level were conducted introducing different independent variables. Results show that having no immigration history from outside the EU, being Christian or atheist, and learning about Europe at school are predictors of a stronger level of identification with Europe. The effect of having an immigration history from outside the EU loses significance when socio-economic status classroom composition is entered into the model. We conclude that differences in identification are not due to different access to learning opportunities, but likely due to personal characteristics. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The issue of how we understand nature and operate with it goes beyond the scope of ecology or economics and directly affects the ontological-anthropological foundations of culture. The subject-object model that dominates today claims universal validity, but many thinkers challenge its universality. Representatives of the European continental conservative thought of the 20th - early 21st centuries focus on the already accepted forms of natural knowledge and nature relations, which do not imply the objectification of nature or its reduction to an economic resource. These cultural forms belong to the historical past, which raises the question of the possible return to them by the contemporary man or of their possible return to his life. The article starts with the analysis of the nature-knowledge that dominated, according to the mentioned conservative thinkers, before the modern ‘objectification’ of nature. The author considers two related but non-identical approaches to the ‘traditional’ understanding of nature developed by these thinkers. The first approach claims the ‘sanctification of nature’, i.e., the natural world is not objectified but understood as a single reality that includes the man and has a sacred status. The second approach is represented by the metaphysically oriented conservatists and considers the natural world primarily through its function of symbolizing the transcendent supernatural world. Then the author considers the conservative thinkers’ views on the ‘nihilism’ of the last centuries, which led to the current subjectobject relationship with nature, and focuses on their perception of the Christian understanding of nature. The article concludes with the hypothesis that the recognition of each culture’s ‘right to its own nature’ (the essence of the contemporary cultural pluralism) can help to overcome the universalization of a specific understanding of nature by choosing a different model known to this culture in past epochs.

European identity is often considered a civic identity, as opposed to a cultural one, because of the instrumental approach that people use when making estimations regarding their attitudes toward the EU. We build on Habermas’ view regarding the pragmatic understanding of the impact European decisions have on people’s everyday lives, and argue that the European identity is intrinsically linked to the costs-benefits paradigm of assessing the importance of European decisions. Therefore we consider the European identity must be understood as a civic identity and emphasize the need of a general profile of a citizen who consider himself a European citizen as well, in order to understand the consequences of the European integration. By means of a national survey conducted in May 2011, we show that the European citizen who acknowledges his/her European identity is highly educated, has a high income, lives in urban areas of the country, and is more convinced of the advantages of the Romanian integration in the EU than the disadvantages. In the same time, he/she is more knowledgeable in what concerns basic EU-related information. This confirms the hypothesis of the acknowledgement of the European identity by means of pragmatic identifications of the costs and benefits of the European integration.

This study draws on a constructivist approach to identity as built through discourse. It seeks to examine the production of European identity by discourse. Its aim is to analyze the European (collective) identity as a discursively constructed concept that emerges in linguistic interaction. To this end, this analysis explores the categories used in linguistic interaction to define and understand the sense of belonging to a European identity. To show how European identity is made by discourse, the EC President’s address to the European Parliament delivered on September 2011 is analyzed. The method used is membership categorization devices analysis, a useful analytical tool stemming from Harvey Sacks’s original work on conversation.

In today's discourse, the concept of identity is profoundly contested, traversing socio-political movements like Black Lives Matter to intricate international law scenarios, such as Ukraine's identity contested by the Russian Federation. Central to these discussions is Europe, particularly post the 2016 Brexit referendum, which initiated a deep reflection on Europe's and the European Union's (EU) core identities. The myriad, spontaneous debates coalesce into a formidable challenge regarding European identity. A generic approach to this identity conundrum is to reference the values articulated in Article 2 of the Treaty on EU. However, this comes with complications. First, the current identity debate emerged precisely within the ambit of Article 2. Secondly, referencing David Hume's philosophical distinction, it is crucial to differentiate between the normative aspirations in European law ("what ought to be") and the prevailing reality ("what is"). Given the increasing discussions on identity, it is essential to bypass simplistic explanations and delve deeper. The pivotal questions surrounding Europe, its inherent identity, and the very essence of the EU might require an alternative analytical lens. This article intends to embark on a journey reflecting on European identity with a nuanced perspective from juridical logic, aiming to move beyond commonplace interpretations. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The author characterizes memory politics and identity politics as analytical categories formed in a highly competitive field of meanings and interpretations. The methodological approach is social constructivism, which represents the mainstream in the study of memory and identity politics. However, the author considers it necessary to take into account the socio-cultural framework of actions performed by various actors that shape memory and identity. In addition, sharing the methodologically innovative approach advanced by I.S. Semenenko to the definition and analysis of identity politics, the author applies it to the object of her research. The article proposes using the concept of securitization to study not only the politics of memory, but also the identity politics pursued by the European Union. The shaping of a European identity on the basis of memory politics involves many problems, both supranational and national. This article deals primarily with supranational policy, but national discourses of memory and identity politics are also taken into account. In this context, the concepts per se, which have categorical conjugacy, turn out to be associated with courses characterized by considerable discord. The seemingly unshakable foundations of memory politics, established after World War II, are being challenged by the new member states of the European Union, shaping different practices of remembrance and forgetting. As a result, implying the possibility of different interpretations and harmonization of discourses, dialogical memory as the foundation of European identity is giving way to the securitization of memory politics and identity politics, which means their instrumental use to legitimize specific policies.

Drawing on Cristian Cercel’s 2019 contribution Romania and the Quest for European Identity: PhiloGermanism without Germans, the present article pursues the creation of Romanian philo-Germanism following the 1989 Romanian Revolution in the paradoxical absence of the German minority, which all but disappeared during the early ‘90s; the arguments follow an ethnic group which evolved from being an agent of colonial power in the late Middle Ages to becoming an agent of transnational capital in postcommunist times. Additionally, the article discusses the inflated importance of the German civilizational model as a cure for the perceived shortcomings of a semi-peripheral nation for which self-colonialism, imitative capitalism, brain drain, and labor extractivism were seen as the only conceivable ways of preventing demotion to the status of periphery following the revolution. Lastly, the different manifestations of this cultural stance are represented, as well as how sympathy towards one minority was gradually institutionalized and practiced on a large scale to the detriment of others, chiefly the Hungarians and the Roma, in a case of revived nationalism and ethnocentrism on behalf of the vanishing Germans. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Proponents of greater European political unity through the development of the European Union (EU) have long sought to foster a "European" identity among citizens as a way of advancing their cause. And there is now a substantial body of scholarship devoted to understanding the social, economic, and demographic factors contributing to the development of such an identity. Recently, there has been a growing interest in cultural influences, but the possible impact of religion has been largely ignored. Using Eurobarometer 65.2 (2006), we show that religious groups differ systematically in their propensity to take "European" identity markers. Using multivariate analysis, we demonstrate that Catholics are most likely to be cognitive "Europeans", while Protestants and other Christians are less likely to take such perspectives. Religiosity tends to reinforce the dominant propensity of each tradition. These religious differences persist even under statistical controls for other demonstrated influences, although their effects are strongest in the old Western European "core" of the EU. The long-term decline of Catholic religiosity thus has important implications for the future of "European" identities: their growth will depend increasingly on less "diffuse" and more variable influences, such as successful economic management by EU and national governments. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The “Vox” party has turned into an influential actor of the European politics due to its electoral success; institutional and ideological adaptation to the country’s changing party landscape; attempts to create its own institutional, organizational, informational, and creative resources; as well as its policy of forming strong alliances with European and American rightwing conservative forces. Based on the spatial approach (categories of political space and political identity) and discourse-analysis, the author tries to comprehend the policy guidelines of “Vox”; determines the place of the party in the political system and the media sphere of Spain; defines the role that “Vox” plays in shaping the regional agenda of the EU. The study focuses on the political and institutional aspects of how “Vox” strengthens its relations with similar EU parties based on partisan and ideological identity, designing alternative projects of European integration, and establishing a new, ideologized format for the relations of Spain (and more broadly - the EU) and the Ibero-American countries. The author concludes about the structuring and the formal institutionalization of communications and political interactions between the far-right political elites which carries risks for the EU’s efforts to create a macropolitical identity and the metanarrative of memory, therefore, potentially leading to political divisions in the EU.

The article aims to illustrate the attempts and the obstacles to reform the EU. Starting with an analysis of the increasing urge of renewing the EU legal structure, this article will highlight the rising interest within the European institutions to involve the citizens and the civil society in the process of renew through a new original tool; in a second step, it will briefly present the architecture of the CoFoE and its hybrid format which combines institutional negotiations and citizen participation. Hence it will focus on obstacles to the reforms proposed by the Conference. In the end, the article draws some critical conclusions regarding the future outcomes.

The article introduces an alternative opinion on Brexit voiced by John Major, who was the Prime Minister of the United Kingdom when it joined the European Union. In his public speeches, John Major touched upon such issues as national sovereignty, British identity, migration, economy, political and diplomatic influence, state unity, etc. John Major believes that Brexit will eventually do more harm than good and that the pro-Brexit rhetoric is a manifestation of populism. He does not consider the European Union as a threat to the British identity. The research was based on I. S. Semenenko’s idea of the panEuropean identity as a resource for the development of the European Union. Even though Brexit and Covid-19 weakened the European identity, the further development of identity policy is likely to strengthen the sense of belonging. Thus, John Major’s reasonable rhetoric can be considered from the opposite standpoint.

The latest emergencies – economic, refugee, and the pandemic of Covid-19 – has impacted in European collective identity construction, especially in Southern Europe. This article investigates if the pandemic crisis has activated in young Italian and Spanish university students nationalistic or/and European responses. The analysis, based on an online survey, uses the partial least squares structural equation modelling (PLS-SEM) statistical method to perform an exploratory analysis of the explanatory theoretical model of European sentiment. The results show that young people attribute several meanings to Europe during the pandemic, which are based mainly on making informed decisions and recognizing a common space of interaction as an opportunity of peace, security and democracy. The findings highlight the role of EU communicative actions in increasing trust in national and European institutions.

In the history of Europe, there are only a few symbols that are common to all 27 EU countries: the Greek and Roman legacy, a common Christian religion, a shared bulk of common values and beliefs. The paper evaluates if Euro as a common currency should be considered as a symbol who may contribute to the European construction process and the role of symbols in the consolidation of a European collective identity. Our hypothesis is that the existence of a bulk of common symbols - among which the Euro currency is one of the most visible, shared widely by EU citizens - will consolidate the process of European construction. The lack of a common identity is often used by extremist parties as an argument in favor of Euro-pessimism and a return to nation state welfare. Our paper highlights the subtle links between money, collective identity and European integration. The results show a link between the rise of awareness concerning a European identity and the adoption of Euro. Fostering European symbols such as a single currency is contributing to create the conditions that allow the emergence of a sense of collective belonging, the European common identity. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Colloquia Humanistica is the property of Polish Academy of Sciences, Institute of Slavic Studies and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Kyrgyzstan and Estonia are two post-Soviet countries which, after the collapse of the USSR, chose different trajectories of ethnopolitical and socio-economic development, attitudes towards the Russian language, the Soviet period of their history, as well as interaction with Russia in the international arena. The focus of the article is perceived inclusiveness of the modern sociocultural contexts by Russians living in Kyrgyzstan or Estonia as well as its role in their identification and acculturation (N = 630). As a result of the path analysis, it was revealed that the perceived inclusiveness of the contexts of Kyrgyzstan and Estonia by Russians is positively associated with civic (Kyrgyz and Estonian) identity, the strategy of integration and assimilation, and is negatively associated with the strategy of separation. Moreover, the perceived in clusiveness of the Estonian context by Russians is negatively associated with ethnic and religious identity. These and other universal and context-specific patterns of relationships are discussed in the article through the prism of sociocultural contexts of Kyrgyzstan and Estonia.

This article helps to raise awareness towards the complexity of communication approaches to European Capitals of Culture cities, in academic research. Moreover, it responds to the need of creating a context for future researchers who need a starting point in analyzing the way European Capitals of Culture is communicated. The aim of the article is to provide a theoretical overview on the way the European Capitals of Culture (ECoC) project is tackled upon in the scientific studies within the communication domain. The sample is formed of scientific articles retrieved from Web of Science and DOAJ databases. The systematic literature review focuses on the methodological designs used in the articles under analysis. I will associate each article with either with an advantage/ gain frame or with a disadvantage/ loss frame. This overview highlighted a polarized approach to the ECoC project. Whereas some articles present ECoC as a Europeanized way of communication, other studies lay an emphasis on the ECoC cities as a way of communication that promotes local specificity. The analysis will show that these choices are not arbitrary and differ from one city to another, depending on their interests and background.

The article studies the challenges of European identity as apolitical concept at the stage of its establishment. Identity is viewed as the result of socio-cultural self-knowledge process, which is characterized by discreteness and continuity. The study of German scientific identity discourse, specification of nucleus and periphery nominations for European identity notion and the reference to the data of German newspaper corpora reveal the multilayer character of the concept, as well as the fact that in line with European identity there is a number of other types, such as individual, collective, social, political, regional and national.

The diversity of the EU is both a strength and a weakness, with Issues of National and European identity contributing to division, marginalization and exclusion. Many European citizens have very firmly entrenched, but frequently simplistic, views about the value of the European Union as good (pro EU) or bad (anti EU). To promote a culture of increased tolerance and inclusion, EU citizens need to develop a more mature and nuanced understanding of National and European identity that considers the validity of others’ points of view. Serious Games are increasingly recognised as active and effective methods for tackling complex social problems. Therefore, the RU EU? (are you EU?) project developed a game to increase players’ awareness of the complexity of European identity and values, to help players develop a more detailed understanding of European identity and promote critical thinking about their own views, the views of others, and the wider societal consequences. In this paper we describe the RU EU? Game as a case study explaining the thinking behind the game design. We outline the early design tasks that led to development of the multicomponent model of European identity that we used in the game, the adoption of the journalist narrative and the tools that assisted the player in his goal of compiling and publishing a set of articles about European identity. We discuss the potential of the game tools and mechanics to be used more widely to promote social understanding and inclusion.

The article aims to illustrate the attempts and the obstacles to reform the EU. Starting with an analysis of the increasing urge of renewing the EU legal structure, this article will highlight the rising interest within the European institutions to involve the citizens and the civil society in the process of renew through a new original tool; in a second step, it will briefly present the architecture of the CoFoE and its hybrid format which combines institutional negotiations and citizen participation. Hence it will focus on obstacles to the reforms proposed by the Conference. In the end, the article draws some critical conclusions regarding the future outcomes. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The Internet, and specifically the World Wide Web, has always been a useful tool in the effort to achieve more outward-looking economies. The launch of the.eu TLD (top-level domain) in December of 2005 introduced the concept of a pan-European Internet identity that aimed to enhance the status of European citizens and businesses on the global Web. In this study, the countries of origin of websites that choose to use the.eu TLD are investigated and the reasoning behind that choice, as well as its relation to each country's economy and external trade are discussed. Using the Web as a tool, information regarding a vast number of existing.eu websites was collected, through means of Web data extraction, and this information was analyzed and processed by a detailed algorithm that produced results concerning each website's most probable country of origin based on a multitude of factors. This acquired knowledge was then used to investigate relations with each member-state's presence in its local ccTLD, its GDP and its external trade revenue. The study establishes a correlation between presence in the.eu TLD and external trade that is both independent of a country's GDP and stronger than the relation between its local ccTLD presence and external trade. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The purpose of this article is to contribute to the analysis of the European identity's narrative. Drawing on a range of focus group interviews with Erasmus students, it is aimed to understand how they perceive European identity and the meanings of Europe in these students' representations. In the light of the empirical findings, it is considered that Europe is more an adjective condition than a substantive one on their representative anchorages. The outcomes also point to the ambivalent and ambiguous character of the meanings associated with Europe's project. Besides, the significance they attribute to their exchange experiences does not always have implications in their ideas about a united Europe. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

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European identity is an identity of the European Union (EU) and it has been constructed again and again since it was introduced. It is a socially constructed identity, which is not defined, not fixed, not finished but dynamic. The language policy of the EU also has an effect in this construction process, as the EU is a multilingual Union, which has 24 official languages. This policy has been developed for many years just like the European identity. The purpose of this research is to examine the role of EU's language policy in constructing the European identity. Both the European identity and the EU's language policy serve social cohesion and integration. They are in relation with one another, and the language policy has an effect on the construction of European identity as it is socially constructed through the interactions of individuals as agents equipped with language resources and with the developments sustained by the EU institutions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]