National Identity and Public Attitudes Toward the World Health Organization

Abstract

This article examines whether assumptions about the contradiction between national identity and support for international organizations are reflected in public support of the World Health Organization (WHO). Study 1 uses a comparative multilevel analysis to examine the link between national identification and confidence in the WHO as well as the influence of globalization on these attitudes. Study 2, which is based on a panel survey in Israel, explores whether attitudes toward the WHO have changed over time and under the influence of the COVID-19 pandemic and whether relations between national identification, national chauvinism, and perceptions of the WHO have also changed. Overall, the findings indicate that there is no clear-cut contradiction between national identity and public support for the WHO.