Continuity and Change in the Study of Euroscepticism: Plus ça change?*

Abstract

AbstractEuroscepticism has been treated as a marginal phenomenon in European Union studies. It has been portrayed as exceptional, belonging to the realm of pariah politics. This article contests this view arguing that although the term was first coined during the mid‐1980s in Britain, its features were present since the early stages of integration. Pointing to its changing nature over time, it calls for a holistic approach that would examine the phenomenon beyond the study of party politics and public opinion. It urges scholars to explicitly treat Euroscepticism as an ‘independent’ as well as a ‘dependent’ variable. The next generation of Euroscepticism should be performing comparative analysis identifying and explaining different patterns of opposition to the EU, and focusing on their implications for the process of European integration, the direction of EU policy, domestic European politics and the development of EU studies.