Can Money buy Love? : The Impact of the Cohesion Policy of the European Union on European Identity

2019

Master's thesis Innovative governance and public management ME523 - University of Agder 2019 This Master thesis explores the relationship between Cohesion policies of the EU and European identity. After first describing the history and context of Cohesion policies of the EU, the literature on European identity studies is reviewed. This discussion develops an economic utilitarian argument, that citizens in Europe develop their identification with the EU partly on rational considerations, and that the added quality of life provided by investments of the EU would positively influence their European identity. This effect is expected to be different throughout European regions.The hypothesesare …