European Opinion Research Articles

Public's perspective on COVID-19 adenovirus vector vaccines after thrombosis with thrombocytopenia syndrome (TTS) reports and associated regulatory actions – A cross-sectional study in six EU member states

ObjectiveIn 2021, thrombosis with thrombocytopenia syndrome (TTS) was confirmed by the European Medicines Agency (EMA) as a rare side effect of the COVID-19 adenovirus vector vaccines Vaxzevria® and Jcovden®. This study aimed to describe the public’s knowledge of TTS and how it affected the willingness to be vaccinated with COVID-19 vaccines and other vaccines in six European countries. MethodsFrom June to October of 2022, a multi-country cross-sectional online survey was conducted in Denmark, Greece, Latvia, Netherlands, Portugal, and Slovenia. The minimum target of participants to be recruited was based on the size of the country’s population. The results were analysed descriptively. ResultsIn total, 3794 respondents were included in the analysis; across the six countries, 33.3 %–68.3 % reported being familiar with signs and symptoms of TTS, although 3.1–61.4 % of those were able to identify the symptoms correctly. The reported changes in willingness to be vaccinated against COVID-19 and with other vaccines varied per country. The largest reported change in the willingness to be vaccinated with Vaxzevria® and Jcovden® was observed in Denmark (61.2 %), while the willingness to be vaccinated with other COVID-19 vaccines changed most in Slovenia (30.4 %). The smallest decrease in willingness towards future vaccination against COVID-19 was reported in the Netherlands (20.9 %) contrasting with the largest decrease observed in Latvia (69.1 %). ConclusionKnowledge about TTS seemed to have influenced the public’s opinion in Europe resulting in less willingness to be vaccinated with Vaxzevria® and Jcovden®. Willingness for vaccination against COVID-19 with other vaccines and widespread use of vaccines to prevent other diseases also differed and seemed to be determined by the approaches taken by national health authorities when reacting to and communicating about COVID-19 vaccination risks. Further investigation of optimal risk communication strategies is warranted.

Языковая репрезентация черт национального менталитета в сопоставительном аспекте (русско-немецкие параллели)

The aim of the research is to investigate whether the lexicon of the Russian language reflects a national trait, as perceived by Europeans, of a natural inclination of Russians towards subordination. The paper conducts a comparative lexico-semantic analysis of the main expressions denoting the situation of subordination in Russian and German. The analysis aims to identify similarities and differences in semantic features, as well as the denotative potential of the selected lexemes. The results show that the idea of subordination is more deeply ingrained in the semantics of German lexemes than in that of Russian lexemes. The interpretation of the comparative results draws on the principles of linguoculturology, imagology and the contemporary theory of archetypes. Taking these principles into account leads to the preliminary conclusion that the common European opinion about the natural inclination of Russians towards subordination is a false stereotype. The research is novel in that it is the first to examine from a comparative perspective the linguistic representation of a national stereotype that reflects the perception of a nation from an external perspective rather than self-perception. The work is the first to provide evidence that linguistic data does not correspond to the stereotype. Scientific novelty lies also in the fact that the proposed approach expands the scope of research in linguoculturology, which has traditionally focused on the linguistic representation of cultural concepts rather than national mentality.

Are Generations Really Divided by Climate? Preference for Conflict in Fridays for Future Media Coverage

ABSTRACT This paper analyses the role of the media in the representation of youth climate action, specifically the media tendency to construct the age-related aspects of climate change through a conflictual framing. A qualitative analysis of 347 articles on the Fridays for Future (FFF) activities produced by a diverse sample of the mainstream online Czech media reveals how media are generally absorbed by the generational perspective and conflict when covering the issue, but in two different ways reflecting the position towards the FFF. Conflictual framing is either based on a negative representation of the FFF movement itself, or, in the dominant case when the media are supportive of the movement, is created through an emphasis on the theme of intergenerational justice. We follow the theoretical approach of peace journalism calling for a substantial change in the media coverage of global crises and argue that, given the already polarised public opinion in Europe (and in the Czech Republic specifically), the media tendency to support yet another polarising perspective, based on age-differences this time, does not contribute to the possible solution of the problem.

Resilience and Vulnerabilities Related to Russia’s Invasion of Ukraine: The Emergence of a New Club of Nato and EU Members

Abstract Тhis article compares and contrasts macro- and micro-foundational explanations about disinformation and resilience in Europe as a result of Russia’s war in Ukraine. It presents micro-level data about the shifting public opinion in Europe after Russia’s invasion in Ukraine on Feb 24, 2022 on the topics of NATO and EU support and favorability, sympathy for Ukraine and condemnation of Russia, including support for sanctions against Moscow (Pew Research Center 2021, 2022). The study compares and contrasts traditional macro-level analytical frameworks such as deterrence, institutionalization and adaptation. I argue that a combination of macro- (or institutional) and micro-level factors (associated with the idiosyncrasies of the domestic public opinion) best explain the shifting attitudes since the beginning of the War in Ukraine. Against the backdrop of NATO and the EU’s increased resilience, a new group or sub-club of “vulnerable” allies has emerged among some central and east European nations. The article evaluates different constraints and vulnerabilities and makes recommendations how to reduce misinformation and contestation in these states.

Pombaline propaganda in France: Translation, visualization, radicalization

The fact that Pombal is today one of the most important actors of enlightened absolutism is due above all to his comprehensive reform program, which included virtually all political fields of action of the 18th century. At least as important, however, is the fact that he accompanied his measures with extremely intensive public relations work: Pombal had understood how important it was to get public opinion in Europe on his side, because especially those reforms that threatened the traditional rights and positions of power of the Catholic Church were the subject of controversial debate in a Europe divided along confessional lines. France played an important role in the European battle of opinion: French intellectuals and publicists dominated international public opinion, and French was the language of the educated and enlightened. This paper will therefore examine how Pombal's propaganda functioned in France and what significance French translations and adaptations had for the European battle of opinion.

Come together? The unusual combination of precariat materialist and educated post-materialist support for an Australian Universal Basic Income

International studies using the European Social Survey (ESS) reveal higher support for Universal Basic Income (UBI) in poorer countries with less generous welfare systems, and among individuals with lower income and education, and leftist political leanings. We present data from the 2019−20 Australian Survey of Social Attitudes mirroring the ESS question. Australia falls in the middle of European opinion, with 51% supporting a UBI, increasing slightly during the onset of Covid-19. We also find higher support among two different groups: (1) those facing greater ‘material’ precarity, including younger, low-income, unemployed, suburban renters, and (2) those who have more post-materialist concerns, including Green-left voters and those favouring redistributive values. Unlike in other countries, higher education predicts more support, while homeownership predicts less. The article concludes with challenges to introducing UBI to Australia, including potentially contradictory strategies for different support bases (material vs post-material), ongoing commitments to means-testing, and negative framing in the media.

Constructing Victimization Grand-Narrative in the Ukrainian Foreign-Language Press (1901–1926)

The paper seeks to develop new avenues for a study of the Ukrainian press in the West European languages in Europe during the first quarter of the twentieth century. For the first time ever, we employ here the framing perspective for the study of the victimization grand-narrative of Ukrainians in their foreign-language print media in Europe. We examine the victimization of the Ukrainian people in terms of ‘human interest’, ‘conflict’ and ‘morality’ frames in the press discourse of the respective historical periods: colonial (1901–1918), postcolonial (1919–1921), and neo-colonial (1921/1922–1926). We argue that victimization grand-narrative in the press was used purposefully to evoke compassion and empathy from the West European public opinion for the Ukrainian nation as ‘collective’ victim (‘oppressed nation’). Additionally, this research proves that victimization of Ukrainians geared at securing support and solidarity for their nation-state aspirations from the European opinion leaders.

Zygomatic implant: major considerations in the COVID-19 pandemic

Introduction: The dissemination of COVID-19 has presented significant challenges for dentistry. In this context, dental care during the pandemic is challenging due to the high risk of infection. In this scenario of infections and the COVID-19 pandemic, there are huge concerns in dental implant procedures, especially zygomatic implants (ZI), which need to be performed for several reasons, mainly to improve the quality of life of patients. Objective: The present study performed a brief systematic review of zygomatic implantation in the context of the COVID-19 pandemic, to highlight the main challenges and guideline-based safety strategies. Methods: The research was carried out from May 2021 to June 2021 and developed based on Scopus, PubMed, Science Direct, Scielo, and Google Scholar, following the Systematic Review-PRISMA rules. The quality of the studies was based on the GRADE instrument and the risk of bias was analyzed according to the Cochrane instrument. Results: European guidelines and expert opinion showed on the control and prevention of infections in dentistry during the pandemic. As the guidelines were not based on solid evidence, they were supplemented by expert opinion on the control and prevention of infections in dentistry. The type of personal protective equipment provided by the dental team must be appropriate for the procedure and the risk of infection. the American Academy of Implant Dentistry (AAID) points to the issues listed as “What constitutes a dental implant-related emergency?; How should patients be screened and screened?; What personal protective equipment is needed?; How should operators be equipped?; What equipment should be used?; What, when, and how can procedures be performed?” Conclusion: In this current context of general care with dental procedures, especially with ZI, clinical studies show how these safety measures against COVID-19 are important, as ZI involves important surgical management.

Nasilja nad Srbima Gnjilanske kaze 1900-1903. godine

According to the administrative reform of the Ottoman Empire at the end of the 19th century, the Gnjilankaza was part of the Prištinasandžak of the Kosovo vilayet. Kaza and the town of Gnjilane were of great importance for the Serbian population, which was compact and numerous in that area. It was precisely because of this that it was exposed to various atrocities and violence, which, according to Albanians idea, should have resulted in the emigration and reduction of the number of Serbs. Over time, Albanian crimes against Serbs in Old Serbia increased - it was recorded that there were 979 of them in the Gnjilankaza from 1889 to 1912, of which 151 were for the period from 1900 to 1903. Violence in Gjilan kaza was repeated every day, and Serbs, faced with confiscation of property, burning of houses, rape of girls and women, ban on carrying weapons, were forced to emigrate to Serbia or other places in the Ottoman Empire. The Turkish authorities did not take measures to restore order and protect the Serbian population. Failure to take measures and impunity against the perpetrators had the effect of increasing the number of atrocities, which encouraged lesser-known perpetrators, even the smallest and most ordinary Albanians, to continue destroying Serbs in full view of the authorities, not only in Gnjilan kaza, but in the whole of Old Serbia. There are numerous cases where the authorities looked favorably upon the rioters and cooperated with them on an almost daily basis. From time to time, the military actions undertaken did not bring the expected results, and the situation on the ground, after the suspension of the actions of the army and the gendarmerie, returned to its original state, after which an even greater anarchy reigned. From the Gnjilan kaza, and in general from the Priština sandjak, it spread and covered other parts of the Kosovo vilayet. The actions of the Turkish authorities, in this case the kaymakam of Gnjilan, who not only did not react to the complaints of the Serbs, but often stood in solidarity with the wrongdoers and supported such actions, went hand in hand with Abanian's misdeeds. The consuls of the Kingdom of Serbia in Priština reported daily to the Government in Belgrade about the situation in Gnjilan kaza and Old Serbia in general, which through its representatives in the Ottoman Empire and in the capitals of the great powers tried to influence European opinion and cause their reaction. The Ottoman authorities wanted to demonstrate to Europe that they were interested in bringing order to Old Serbia, so the general inspector for the Rumelian vilayets, Hilmi Pasha, took some measures. However, his work was concentrated only on certain parts, but not on those where there was a need.

GREY UKRAINIAN CATTLE BREED AS THE ANCESTOR OF PODOLIC (PODOLIAN) GROUP

Since 19th century, there is an opinion in Europe that the Podolic cattle group was formed after the name and genetics of cattle that existed on the Podolic Upland. Currently, this position is being discussed in scientific circles of European countries, breeding animals of the Podolic group. Taking into account above-mentioned, in the article there is proved the background for the justification, that the Grey Ukrainian breed of cattle, which exists on Podolic Upland and in the whole Ukraine, belongs to the Podolic group and may be its ancestor.
 Podillya is the part of Ukraine and borders on the western regions of modern Ukraine, which at the time of the most intensive cattle trade were parts of foreign countries. That’s why the cattle from all over Ukraine were collected in Podillya and fattened by local landowners to be exported abroad. According to the written evidences, the cattle trade has been going on since the 15th century, but then it has been already developed, ie the beginning of trade should be sought earlier. The possibility of finding such evidences is significantly limited due to the lack of written sources. The remains of long-horned cattle are found in Podillya and all over the modern Ukraine from the 7th millennium BC.

Popular Attitudes Toward the Distribution of Vaccines Against COVID‐19: The Swiss Case

With the arrival of vaccines against the novel coronavirus in late 2020, the issue of how vaccines should be distributed and which groups should be prioritized has become salient. We study popular attitudes toward the distribution of COVID‐19 vaccines and how these have changed over the course of the pandemic in Switzerland, drawing on data from two rounds of an original public opinion survey conducted in the spring and winter of 2020. We find that the public supports prioritizing vulnerable groups such as health care workers or the elderly. We also find a notable degree of cross‐generational solidarity: younger age cohorts prioritize the elderly, while older groups prioritize (typically younger) health care workers. We then examine whether this finding is not in fact driven by vaccine hesitancy. This is not the case for older age groups, whose solidarity thus seems to be genuine. Vaccine hesitancy is an issue among younger groups, however.

Political Trust and Support for Immigration in the European Mass Public

What factors shape European opinion on immigration? Past work has largely pointed to evaluations of various immigrant groups and the cultural, criminal, and/or economic threats they may pose to society, but has overlooked how evaluations of the broader political system matter. Using cross-sectional and panel data from the European Social Survey (ESS), we find that higher levels of political trust are associated with increased public support for allowing a variety of different groups to immigrate, including non-Europeans, Muslims, and Roma. We also find that political trust is positively associated with support for a generous and accommodating refugee policy. We attribute these findings to greater mass confidence in the political system’s ability to protect the native population from any perceived immigration-related threats. Overall, these findings suggest that political trust, which is near historic lows, has important implications for understanding public opinion toward immigration, a highly salient issue in contemporary European politics.

Citizens and the European Union since 1950

The article covers the relationship of the citizens with the European Union and its predecessors since the beginnings of the European integration in the 1950s. It dis­tinguishes the period of the unquestioned citizen during the 1950s and 1960s, the period of the questioned and mobilized citizen since the 1970s and the period of the active citizen since around the turn the of century, in looking at European elec­tions, referendums, European movements, interest organizations, regular European opinion polls, complaints by citizens at the European Parliament, at the European Commission and at the European ombudsman and legal proceedings by citizens at the European Court in Luxemburg. In addition, the article looks at the change be­tween periods of trust and periods of distrust by citizens in the European institu­tions since the 1950s. It argues that the trend towards the mobilized and active citi­zen includes an eventual strong rise of distrust in periods of crisis, but also by a return of trust by the citizens even in difficult periods such as the recent Covid19 pandemic.

Bilateral Trade and Investment Agreements and the Harmonisation of Copyright Law at International Level: Lessons to be Learned from the TTIP

The Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership, better known under the name “TTIP”, is a bilateral trade and investment agreement that has been negotiated between the European Union and the United States since 2013. The respective administrations on both sides of the Atlantic have several times indicated their desire to resume the negotiations that have been put on hold (but not officially abandoned) after the last US presidential elections. If it is currently uncertain what will be the fate of the TTIP, the topic could be revived as the EU Council in April gave a new mandate to the European Commission to negotiate a Bilateral Trade Agreement with the US, without it being entirely clear what will be the exact scope of the negotiations. More generally, the dynamics of signing bilateral trade and investment agreements with third countries is steadily going forward so that lessons can certainly be learned from the TTIP experience, no matter what happens in the future with its negotiations. The proposed TTIP agreement has given rise to a number of concerns within European public opinion, in particular because of the secret nature of the discussions, which raised questions about the potential contents of the texts and the commitments made on both sides. These concerns recall those expressed at the time of the negotiations on the Anti-Counterfeiting Trade Agreement (ACTA), which mobilised significant concern among public opinion in Europe and ultimately led to the rejection of the Agreement by a large majority in the European Parliament in July 2012. The TTIP, although it obviously has a much broader content than ACTA, likewise contains provisions dedicated to intellectual property rights and more particularly to copyright. Its principal characteristic, however, lies in the inclusion of intellectual property rights in the list of investments protected by a specific section of the agreement. If implemented, the enforcement of this protection would be entrusted to arbitration tribunals or to a special court for the protection of investments that is yet to be set up. Hence the question arises as to whether the regulation of intellectual property by the European Union or one of its Member States, in a way that would affect the scope of the intellectual property rights held by certain large private companies, could be considered as a potential threat to their investments. If this was the case, proceedings could be brought against the EU or one of its Member States, leading to the risk of considerable limitations being imposed on legislators in the necessary implementation of a balanced and effective copyright law in Europe.

The raced constitution of Europe: The Eurobarometer and the statistical imagination of European racism

Centering upon the first Europe-wide public opinion survey of racism, carried out by the Eurobarometer in 1988, this article explores how studying European public opinion research can shed light on what we call the raced constitution of Europe. Based on an analysis of this Eurobarometer survey, we scrutinize how Eurobarometer opinion polling involves a constant scale-switching through which ‘Europe’ and ‘racism’ are co-produced. As we argue, techniques of European opinion polling contributed to the imagination of a ‘European’ ideological whole, from which stabilized categories of ‘non-European others’ were excluded. By creating an opposition between ‘democratic Europe’ and ‘individualized xenophobia’, racism was enacted as a lower class attitude ‘not of Europe’ and as a permanent rem(a)inder of the past that serves to legitimate the project of European integration.

The European Mind-set, European Opinion and Economic Developments in 2007-2017: Major Changes of Public Opinion and the European Mind-set in Years 2004-2018

This study reports major changes in public opinion in the European Union. First part of the study includes (1) citizens´ assessments of the most important issues facing the EU at the moment, (2) The second part of study report changes in (1) national economic situation evaluations, (2) European economic situation evaluations, (3) European economic crisis recovery evaluations (the impact on the crisis on jobs), (4) evaluations of Euro-optimism vs. pessimism, (5) evaluations about the support for the Euro area and (6) evaluations support for the euro. All these changes of the Standard Eurobarometer results are mirrored in relation to long-run GDP changes of the European Union (EU-28). Third part of the study analyses the four key elements of European mind-sets. In general decision theory and general systems theory, a mind-set is a set of assumptions, beliefs, methods, or notations held by one or more people or groups of people. In the field of future studies the concept and the analysis of mind-set have been discussed in many global studies. From this perspective it is interesting to elaborate the European mind-set and its status. The study is based on the very latest “Future of Europe” datasets (September 2017). From these three perspectives this study is relevant for European integration studies. DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.5755/j01.eis.0.12.21870

Contribution of Azerbaijan to the energy security of the European Union

Despite all progress connected with use of renewable energy sources it is widely known that fossil fuels will remain dominating in short - and medium-term prospects. Presently fossil fuels are made more, than three quarters of a global power mix, and in the next decade the level of their use will probably be the same. Among them there are crude oil and natural gas as widely used and globally sold energy resources which reserves unevenly distributed, are responsible to a large extent for energy security in the world. Therefore the relations between the European Union, one of the largest oil and gas consumers, and Azerbaijan, the supplier of energy whose location isn’t really far from the EU attract special attention of many politicians and creators of public opinion in Europe. The Southern Gas Corridor which ceremony of start of the first stage was held on May 29, 1918 in Baku is one of priority projects for the EU, and provides transportation of 10 billion cubic meters of the Azerbaijani gas from the Caspian region through Georgia and Turkey to Europe by 2020 will be the first real diversification of gas coming in from the East. At an initial stage, the gas extracted within the second phase of development of the Azerbaijani gas-condensate field “Shah Deniz” is considered as the main source for the corridor. At later stage other sources can be attracted to the project. Gas within the second stage of Shah Deniz field will be exported to Turkey and to the European markets by expansion of the South Caucasian gas pipeline and construction of Trans-Anatolian (TANAP) and Trans-Adriatic (TAP) pipelines. The project involves two EU member states, Italy and Greece, candidate countries, Turkey and Albania, and Azerbaijan, the EU strategic partner in energy. Four different types of countries were involved: member states, candidate countries, associated partners and future strategic partners. The EU supported Southern Gas Corridor is directed to curtail Russian energy leverage over Eastern and Southeastern European countries which are heavily reliant on Russian gas deliveries. It opens up the direct access for the land locked Caspian states, primarily Turkmenistan and Kazakhstan, to the European gas markets. This article describes development of the energy relations of the EU and the Republic of Azerbaijan. The energy needs and potential of these two partners are investigated and their main interests are defined. The main problems, opportunities and obstacles for power cooperation of the EU and Azerbaijan are discussed, and views of development of their principles of energy policy in the near future are considered.

Кримінологічне розуміння професійної злочинної поведінки людини та її вивчення в європейській науковій думці

Кримінологічне розуміння професійної злочинної поведінки людини та її вивчення в європейській науковій думці

¿Qué es la ciencia abierta?

The concept of open science is analyzed using the model of scientific revolutions coined by Thomas Kuhn. In this way, open science is a paradigm shift in research and, therefore, involves substantial procedural modifications. It is a model promoted by the European Commission who gathered public opinion in Europe about it. The reasons for making this change are not only social (the wealth of society is based on innovation), but also scientific. In this new paradigm, science must be open, collaborative, and made with and for society. In order to explain the elements of open science, several metaphors are used in this article and always include open access, open data, open peer review, and open software. In some cases, open educational resources, citizen science, and open notebooks —although without unanimity— are also included. Finally, we consider future changes within scientific research, especially as they relate to library services.

Public opinion in Europe in quest of harmony?

This article investigates empirically the sway of ideology and social class on public opinion on some of today’s major economic and social issues in European countries. Using European Election Survey data, our results demonstrate that there is a popular convergence on these issues which tends to cut across class and ideological divides and the socio-economic traditions of each nation. The effect of ideology on public opinion on these matters also tends to be largely independent of educational differences. In the light of these findings implications are drawn.