Scientific article
English

Loved and feared: citizens' ambivalence towards free movement in the European Union

ContributorsLutz, Philipp
Published inJournal of European Public Policy, vol. 28, no. 2, p. 268-288
Publication date2021
Abstract

The right of citizens to live and work in any member state is a foundational pillar of the European Union. The views of EU citizens on free movement are characterized by a puzzle: the border-free Europe is seen as the most important achievement of European integration but also appears as a main driver of Euroscepticism. In this article, I argue that this is because of a tension between citizens' own mobility rights and the mobility rights of citizens from other EU countries. This idea of ambivalence towards free movement is tested with observational data and a survey experiment across 28 EU countries. The results suggest that many citizens hold ambivalent views towards free movement due to a tension between the value of one's own mobility and the fear of immigration. Their effective support depends on the relative salience of inward and outward mobility. This finding has important implications for the public support of international integration more generally.

Keywords
  • European Union
  • Free movement
  • Immigration
  • Ambivalence
  • Reciprocity
Citation (ISO format)
LUTZ, Philipp. Loved and feared: citizens” ambivalence towards free movement in the European Union. In: Journal of European Public Policy, 2021, vol. 28, n° 2, p. 268–288. doi: 10.1080/13501763.2020.1720782
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Article (Published version)
accessLevelRestricted
Identifiers
Journal ISSN1350-1763
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