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Political knowledge and attitudes toward (de)centralization in Europe

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  • Floriana Cerniglia
  • Laura Pagani

Abstract

The allocation of competences between the EU and Member States is one of most burning issues in the history of the European integration. From a theoretical economic perspective, this ongoing process calls into question the theory of fiscal federalism. In this paper, we study empirically the impact of European citizens’ knowledge about the EU on their attitudes toward the allocation of competences. We use micro-data from the Eurobarometer survey. We find that more knowledgeable citizens are more willing to favour centralization of competences to the EU in areas where public intervention by individual Member States causes externalities, where scale economies in the provision of public goods are important and where redistributive and stabilization functions have to be pursued.

Suggested Citation

  • Floriana Cerniglia & Laura Pagani, 2014. "Political knowledge and attitudes toward (de)centralization in Europe," Working Papers 272, University of Milano-Bicocca, Department of Economics, revised Apr 2014.
    • Handle: RePEc:mib:wpaper:272
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    More about this item

    Keywords

    European Union; Information; Policy opinions; Political Economy;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • H7 - Public Economics - - State and Local Government; Intergovernmental Relations
    • D8 - Microeconomics - - Information, Knowledge, and Uncertainty

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