National identity as a cultural filter: External perceptions of the EU in Israel

ABSTRACT This article proposes that national identity is regarded as a key cultural filter for understanding external perceptions of the EU among the public. It examines the relationship between national identity and attitudes toward the EU in Israel while considering the distinction between national identification and national chauvinism via two survey studies. Study 1 (N = 1050) used Israel’s hosting of the Eurovision Song Contest 2019 to explore the relations between national identification/chauvinism and general sympathy for the EU. Study 2 (N = 657) inspected the extent to which national identification and national chauvinism are related to perceptions of the EU as a normative power. The findings indicate that national identification and chauvinism relate dissimilarly to attitudes toward the EU and that exposure to the Eurovision Song Contest also interacted with these relations. These findings emphasize the function of national identity as a cultural filter.