Populist attitudes in Croatia: first analysis with notes on conceptualisation and measurement

Abstract This paper analyses individual-level populism in Croatia. Starting from the ideational definition of populism, the study tests to what extent the economic grievances, sociocultural and ideational explanations, respectively, reflect the average populism subscriber in Croatia. The analysis was made using hierarchical linear regression based on field survey data from 2020 (n=979). Results show how populism is mostly associated with authoritarianism, conspiratorial thinking and institutional (dis)trust. The economic grievances explanation has only marginal relevance, revealing that sociotropic perception is more important than the socioeconomic position of the individual. Furthermore, the study emphasises the importance of operationalising populism in accordance with the assumed structure of the concept. In the same vein, it is noted that populism on an attitudinal level should be separated from the concepts of thick ideologies. If this is not done with caution, the conclusions drawn are questionable, and the analytical contribution of populism is imprecisely determined.