European integration has been one of the most noteworthy political phenomena of the contemporary era. Its achievements in fostering economic unification and institutional development in fifty short years have been remarkable, but have not been matched by concern for public support generally, nor the furtherance of European political identification specifically. Moreover, little scholarly work on this topic has yet been produced. This dissertation provides empirical answers to six questions related to the phenomenon of European political identity: (1) To what degree does it exist? (2) What explains variations in levels of European identity among individuals? (3) What is the nature of the identity for those who possess it? (4) What is the depth of the identity? (5) How does the identity play in the context of regional and national competitors? and, (6) How has European identity changed over time? To answer these questions, both quantitative and qualitative data sources have been employed. Twenty-six existing data sets have been examined, in addition to another data set generated specifically for this project. Interviews were also conducted with approximately 80 European identifiers from every EU member state and 60 elites from various regions. Analysis suggests that a European identity exists, but is neither widespread nor necessarily growing, that such an identity is an especially elite phenomenon, and that its character is more cerebral and values-based relative to more typically emotive and ethnically-oriented national identities.
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