EUCROSS

The Europeanisation of Everyday Life: Cross-Border Practices and Transnational Identities among EU and Third-Country Citizens

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 Obiettivo del progetto (Objective)

'The EUCROSS project examines the relationship between the manifold activities of EU residents (nationals, mobile EU citizens, and third-country nationals) across the borders of nation states and their collective identities. Specifically, the project will: 1) map out individuals’ cross-border practices as an effect of European integration and globalisation; 2) assess the impact of these practices on collective identifications (also controlling for the inverse causal process). Which cross-border practices are more likely to foster some form of identification with the EU – e.g., contacts with foreign friends and/or unwanted foreigners, periods of labour mobility abroad, buying property abroad, business and tourist travel, or consumer relations with international companies? Under which contextual and individual conditions do these experiences promote a higher sensitivity to ‘Europe’ – rather than the ‘local’ or the ‘global’ – as an identity catalyst? Which social groups are more prone to adopt a European mindset in the wake of the Europeanisation of everyday life? To disentangle empirically the factors and mechanisms that link together the cross-border practices facilitated by European integration, globalisation and/or other dimensions of collective identity, we adopt a two-stage, mixed quantitative/qualitative approach. In the first stage, we will carry out a quantitative survey among nationals, intra-EU movers (Romanian citizens) and third-country nationals (Turkish citizens) who reside in six European countries (Denmark, Germany, Italy, Romania, Spain and the United Kingdom). In the second stage, we will interrogate, via in-depth interviews, the meaning given by individuals to cross-border practices, their collective identifications, and the role that the European Union, globalisation, and the nation play in these personal narratives, among a select typology of respondents to the quantitative survey.'

Descrizione progetto (Article)

EUCROSS is an EU-funded project that investigated European citizenship-based social practices. The project examined social experiences, knowledge, attitudes and practices of European citizens and non-national residents to discern how different social categories experience European integration and make it part of their lifestyles.

Common cross-border practices within Europe influenced by European integration and globalisation were documented. Researchers used quantitative surveys and qualitative in-depth interviews involving citizens of six Member States as well as Romanians (intra-EU movers) and Turks (third-country citizens) living in these same countries.

EUCROSS explored specific cross-border practices that facilitate identification with the EU, such as contacts with foreign friends, attitudes towards foreigners and shopping abroad. It also looked at which social groups are likely to adopt a European mindset in the wake of the Europeanisation of everyday life.

Phone surveys in different countries (8 500 interviews) were conducted and 160 follow-up in-depth interviews were completed. The team produced six working papers that classify cross-border practices and forms of suparnational identification, as well as outlining research findings. Results of the project have been disseminated to a wider academic and non-academic audience.

Overall, project outcomes will help policymakers prepare more effective policies for integration and for strengthening European identity. EUCROSS has informed debate on perceived diversities and commonalities in Europe, and showed how transnationalism has become a feature of many Europeans' lives, promoting closer identification with Europe.