Schweizer Konstruktionen europäischer Identität im Vergleich. Eine Analyse nationaler Mediendiskurse zu Erweiterungen und Vertiefungen der EU

This paper analyzes the construction of European identity in Swiss media discourses during four moments of EU integration. It is asked how European identity differs between Switzerland and its neighboring countries in the EU and if the deepening and widening of the EU is related to growing differences. A quantitative content analysis shows how particular interpretations of the EU are related to a specific degree of identification with the EU. Results show a low level of identification in Switzerland. Identity constructions with an economic focus are similar in all countries; only Switzerland rejects the EU as community of political values.