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Gustavsson, G. & Larsson Taghizadeh, J. (2023). Rallying around the unwaved flag: national identity and Sweden’s controversial Covid strategy. West European Politics, 46(6), 1063-1088
Open this publication in new window or tab >>Rallying around the unwaved flag: national identity and Sweden’s controversial Covid strategy
2023 (English)In: West European Politics, ISSN 0140-2382, E-ISSN 1743-9655, Vol. 46, no 6, p. 1063-1088Article in journal (Refereed) Published
Abstract [en]

During the Covid-19 pandemic, Sweden soon found itself alone and heavily criticised for its internationally deviant strategy. Why did this approach nevertheless receive widespread public support in Sweden? This article develops and tests a novel rally around the flag (RRTF) theory, which places national identity centre stage. In contrast to previous work, the article differentiates between national pride, national chauvinism, uncritical patriotism, national attachment, and ethnic nationhood conception – expecting only the first three of these to be related to supporting the Swedish Covid approach. Survey data from a politically representative sample of Swedes support the expectations. It is concluded that the popular support for the ‘Swedish experiment’ is to be understood as an RRTF – although in this case the flag was ‘unwaved’. This suggests that even national identities that draw their pride from institutional rather than cultural superiority lend themselves to RRTF processes.

Place, publisher, year, edition, pages
Taylor & Francis Group, 2023
Keywords
Nationalism, patriotism, pandemic, national pride, Sweden
National Category
Political Science
Identifiers
urn:nbn:se:uu:diva-498618 (URN)10.1080/01402382.2023.2186027 (DOI)000952848100001 ()
Funder
Swedish Research Council, 2014-06442Forte, Swedish Research Council for Health, Working Life and Welfare, 2021-00832Swedish Research Council Formas
Available from: 2023-03-17 Created: 2023-03-17 Last updated: 2023-10-05Bibliographically approved
Breidahl, K. N. & Gustavsson, G. (2022). Can we trust the natives?: Exploring the relationship between national identity and trust among immigrants and their descendants in Denmark. Nations and Nationalism, 28(2), 592-611
Open this publication in new window or tab >>Can we trust the natives?: Exploring the relationship between national identity and trust among immigrants and their descendants in Denmark
2022 (English)In: Nations and Nationalism, ISSN 1354-5078, E-ISSN 1469-8129, Vol. 28, no 2, p. 592-611Article in journal (Refereed) Published
Abstract [en]

Politicians often seek to strengthen national identity by encouraging immigrants to adopt the ‘national values’, thus supposedly boosting trust. However, empirical studies of the social effects of national identity have focused almost exclusively on the native majority. In this article, we instead ask how national identity among immigrant minorities affects their trust, including towards natives. We draw on unique survey data from a representative sample of the five largest non-Western immigrant groups and their descendants in Denmark. This reveals that national belonging, national pride and citizenship preferences are positively linked to social as well as institutional trust. These relationships hold even when controlling for the perception of sharing one's values with others and the extent to which one holds ‘typically Danish’ values widely shared among the majority population. This suggests that the emotional component of national identity, but not its content in the form of values, indeed forms an important basis for social cohesion.

Place, publisher, year, edition, pages
John Wiley & Sons, 2022
Keywords
national identity, national values, non-Western immigrants, social cohesion, trust
National Category
Political Science (excluding Public Administration Studies and Globalisation Studies)
Research subject
Political Science
Identifiers
urn:nbn:se:uu:diva-470756 (URN)10.1111/nana.12834 (DOI)000772601600001 ()
Available from: 2022-03-29 Created: 2022-03-29 Last updated: 2023-07-12Bibliographically approved
Gustavsson, G. (2021). Du stolta, du fria: Om svenskarna, Sverigebilden och folkhälsopatriotismen. Stockholm: Kaunitz Olsson
Open this publication in new window or tab >>Du stolta, du fria: Om svenskarna, Sverigebilden och folkhälsopatriotismen
2021 (Swedish)Book (Other (popular science, discussion, etc.))
Place, publisher, year, edition, pages
Stockholm: Kaunitz Olsson, 2021. p. 398
National Category
Political Science (excluding Public Administration Studies and Globalisation Studies)
Identifiers
urn:nbn:se:uu:diva-470757 (URN)9789189015715 (ISBN)
Available from: 2022-03-29 Created: 2022-03-29 Last updated: 2022-05-30Bibliographically approved
Gustavsson, G. & Stendahl, L. (2020). National identity, a blessing or a curse?: The divergent links from national attachment, pride, and chauvinism to social and political trust. European Political Science Review, 12(4), 449-468
Open this publication in new window or tab >>National identity, a blessing or a curse?: The divergent links from national attachment, pride, and chauvinism to social and political trust
2020 (English)In: European Political Science Review, ISSN 1755-7739, E-ISSN 1755-7747, Vol. 12, no 4, p. 449-468Article in journal (Refereed) Published
Abstract [en]

Is it true that national identity increases trust, as liberal nationalists assume? Recent research has studied this side of the ‘national identity argument’ by focusing on conceptions of the content of national identity (often civic or ethnic) and their links to social, rather than political, trust. This paper argues that if we take social identity theory seriously, however, we need to complement this picture by asking how varying the strength – rather than the content – of a person’s sense of their national identity affects both their social and political trust. We break down the different dimensions of national identity, hypothesising and empirically verifying that there are divergent links from national attachment, national pride, and national chauvinism to social and political trust. We do so with data from the US (GSS) and the Netherlands (LISS), thus expanding current knowledge of national identity and trust to a highly relevant yet neglected European case.

Keywords
national identity, trust, liberal nationalism, national attachment, social identity theory
National Category
Political Science (excluding Public Administration Studies and Globalisation Studies)
Research subject
Political Science
Identifiers
urn:nbn:se:uu:diva-409579 (URN)10.1017/S1755773920000211 (DOI)000575822400003 ()
Available from: 2020-04-24 Created: 2020-04-24 Last updated: 2020-12-11Bibliographically approved
Gustavsson, G. & Miller, D. (2019). Introduction: Why Liberal Nationalism Today?. In: Gina Gustavsson & David Miller (Ed.), Liberal Nationalism and Its Critics: Normative and Empirical Questions (pp. 1-20). Oxford: Oxford University Press
Open this publication in new window or tab >>Introduction: Why Liberal Nationalism Today?
2019 (English)In: Liberal Nationalism and Its Critics: Normative and Empirical Questions / [ed] Gina Gustavsson & David Miller, Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2019, p. 1-20Chapter in book (Other academic)
Abstract [en]

The current rise of nationalism in Europe and elsewhere is often said to pose a threat to liberal values. Liberal nationalists argue in reply that nationalism can take a liberal form, and in doing so provide support for both democracy and social justice. The chapter uses empirical evidence to show that people continue to identify strongly with their countries; such identities can exist alongside local, regional, and continental ones. Nor are those who feel close to their country only those who are less educated or politically conservative. The chapter explores whether national identities can be classed as either ethnic or civic, concluding that the prevalence of cultural factors shows that no such sharp distinction can be drawn. Finally, survey evidence is used to show that having a stronger national identity does not correlate with having more authoritarian (and therefore less liberal) views on matters such as civil rights and religious tolerance.

Place, publisher, year, edition, pages
Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2019
Keywords
liberal nationalism, national identity, national pride, cohesion, solidarity
National Category
Political Science (excluding Public Administration Studies and Globalisation Studies)
Research subject
Political Science
Identifiers
urn:nbn:se:uu:diva-403154 (URN)10.1093/oso/9780198842545.003.0001 (DOI)9780198842545 (ISBN)
Available from: 2020-01-24 Created: 2020-01-24 Last updated: 2020-08-20Bibliographically approved
Gustavsson, G. (2019). Kulturdebatt:: Såhär firar en liberal nationalist sjätte juni. Dagens Nyheter
Open this publication in new window or tab >>Kulturdebatt:: Såhär firar en liberal nationalist sjätte juni
2019 (Swedish)In: Dagens NyheterArticle in journal, News item (Other (popular science, discussion, etc.)) Published
National Category
Political Science (excluding Public Administration Studies and Globalisation Studies)
Research subject
Political Science
Identifiers
urn:nbn:se:uu:diva-390399 (URN)
Available from: 2019-08-09 Created: 2019-08-09 Last updated: 2020-02-18Bibliographically approved
Gustavsson, G. (2019). Liberal national identity: thinner than conservative, thicker than civic?. Ethnicities, 19(4), 693-711
Open this publication in new window or tab >>Liberal national identity: thinner than conservative, thicker than civic?
2019 (English)In: Ethnicities, ISSN 1468-7968, E-ISSN 1741-2706, Vol. 19, no 4, p. 693-711Article in journal (Refereed) Published
Abstract [en]

Many of the political debates in Europe call for the strengthening of a national identity that is, somewhat paradoxically, described in universal liberal terms. Yet previous research has not been able to tell to which extent these conceptions of national identity are indeed liberal. This is because we lack an analytical tool that allows liberal conceptions of national identity to be separated from for example conservative ones. There is also a pervasive yet questionable assumption that the more liberal a national identity is the less it can per definition be truly national. This paper seeks to remedy this gap, by bridging the literature on these empirical trends of civic integration with the normative debates surrounding liberal nationalism The result is a tripartite typology for the conceptions of national identity in conservative nationalism, liberal nationalism, and constitutional patriotism, respectively. Each is specified along the following dimensions: (1) whether the sense of national belonging is defined by vertical or horizontal ties; (2) whether the national history is to be revered, taken as a starting point, or critically scrutinised; (3) whether the legitimate place for the shared activity by which the national identity is upheld excludes the private or even the public non-political sphere; (4) whether we are asked to cultivate feelings of piety or loyalty to the homeland; and (5) whether or not the shared public culture of the nation is considered changeable and enforceable. Policy implications for individual rights, immigration and cultural minorities are also discussed.

Keywords
liberal nationalism, constitutional patriotism, civic nationalism, ethnic nationalism, civic integration, public culture, religious establishment, national identity, conservative nationalism
National Category
Political Science (excluding Public Administration Studies and Globalisation Studies)
Research subject
Political Science
Identifiers
urn:nbn:se:uu:diva-379191 (URN)10.1177/1468796819843542 (DOI)000482353300006 ()
Funder
Swedish Research Council, 330-2014-6442
Available from: 2019-03-13 Created: 2019-03-13 Last updated: 2020-02-06Bibliographically approved
Gustavsson, G. & Miller, D. (Eds.). (2019). Liberal Nationalism and Its Critics: Normative and Empirical Questions. Oxford: Oxford University Press
Open this publication in new window or tab >>Liberal Nationalism and Its Critics: Normative and Empirical Questions
2019 (English)Collection (editor) (Refereed)
Abstract [en]

The thesis of liberal nationalism is that national identities can serve as a source of unity in culturally diverse liberal societies, thereby lending support to democracy and social justice.  The chapters in this book examine that thesis from both normative and empirical perspectives, in the latter case using survey data or psychological experiments from the U.S., Canada, the Netherlands, Denmark, France and the UK.  They explore how people understand what it means to belong to their nation, and show that different aspects of national attachment – national identity, national pride and national chauvinism – have contrasting effects on support for redistribution and on attitudes towards immigrants.  The psychological mechanisms that may explain why people’s identity matters for their willingness to extend support to others are examined in depth.   Equally important is how the potential recipients of such support are perceived.  ‘Ethnic’ and ‘civic’ conceptions of national identity are often contrasted, but the empirical basis for such a distinction is shown to be weak.  In their place, a cultural conception of national identity is explored, and defended against the charge that it is ‘essentialist’ and therefore exclusive of minorities.  Particular attention is given to the role that religion can legitimately play within such identities.  Finally the book examines the challenges involved in integrating immigrants, dual nationals and other minorities into the national community.  It shows that although these groups mostly share the liberal values of the majority, their full inclusion depends on whether they are seen as committed and trustworthy members of the national ‘we’.

Place, publisher, year, edition, pages
Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2019
Keywords
chauvinism, culture, essentialism, immigrants, liberal nationalism, national identity, pride, religion, solidarity, trust
National Category
Political Science (excluding Public Administration Studies and Globalisation Studies)
Research subject
Political Science
Identifiers
urn:nbn:se:uu:diva-379193 (URN)9780198842545 (ISBN)9780192580139 (ISBN)
Available from: 2019-03-13 Created: 2019-03-13 Last updated: 2020-04-14Bibliographically approved
Gustavsson, G. (2019). National Attachment — Cohesive, Divisive, or Both?: A Reconsideration of the National Identity Argument through the Lens of Social Identity Theory. In: Gina Gustavsson & David Miller (Ed.), Liberal Nationalism and Its Critics: Normative and Empirical Questions (pp. 59-77). Oxford: Oxford University Press
Open this publication in new window or tab >>National Attachment — Cohesive, Divisive, or Both?: A Reconsideration of the National Identity Argument through the Lens of Social Identity Theory
2019 (English)In: Liberal Nationalism and Its Critics: Normative and Empirical Questions / [ed] Gina Gustavsson & David Miller, Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2019, p. 59-77Chapter in book (Refereed)
Abstract [en]

What are the implications of the psychological research on social identities for the national identity argument? A large number of empirical studies of in-group sympathy and helpfulness, this chapter argues, suggest that the sheer strength of a person’s national attachment should increase her solidarity with her co-nationals. Contrary to what has recently been argued, this relationship is likely to be independent of how a) she conceives of the content of that identity, and b) the extent to which she believes that her co-nationals in turn share this commitment. Viewing nationhood as a social identity further implies that we should distinguish between three dimensions of national attachment: national identity, national pride, and national chauvinism. Having thus theoretically nuanced the expectations that underpin the national identity argument, the chapter proceeds to test them empirically. It uses survey data from the Netherlands (LISS), a more relevant context for liberal nationalists, it is argued, than the more typically studied cases of the U.S. and Canada. While the three-dimensional structure of national attachment is similar to the one previously found in the US, in the Dutch case there are also significant relationships between national attachment and support for egalitarianism, even when controlling for ideology. In line with the theoretical expectations, national identity turns out to be consistently related to more willingness to share resources with our co-nationals. National pride on the contrary shows a negative link to redistributive solidarity.

Place, publisher, year, edition, pages
Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2019
Keywords
national attachment, national identity, national pride, national chauvinism, national identity argument, egalitarianism, redistributive solidarity, LISS, liberal nationalism, social identity theory
National Category
Political Science (excluding Public Administration Studies and Globalisation Studies)
Research subject
Political Science
Identifiers
urn:nbn:se:uu:diva-379195 (URN)10.1093/oso/9780198842545.003.0004 (DOI)9780198842545 (ISBN)9780192580139 (ISBN)
Available from: 2019-03-13 Created: 2019-03-13 Last updated: 2020-08-20Bibliographically approved
Gustavsson, G. (2019). Svenskhet är mer än en invandringsfråga. Kvartal
Open this publication in new window or tab >>Svenskhet är mer än en invandringsfråga
2019 (Swedish)In: Kvartal, ISSN 2002-6269Article in journal (Other (popular science, discussion, etc.)) Published
Abstract [sv]

Svensk kultur är inte bara något som invandrare måste lära sig. Det är minst lika mycket något infödda svenskar själva behöver odla. För såväl demokratins som välfärdsstatens överlevnad är i längden beroende av en känsla av nationell gemenskap, menar statsvetaren Gina Gustavsson.

Keywords
nationell identitet, liberal nationalism, svenskhet, svensk kultur, svenska värden, konstitutionell patriotism
National Category
Political Science (excluding Public Administration Studies and Globalisation Studies)
Research subject
Political Science
Identifiers
urn:nbn:se:uu:diva-403144 (URN)
Available from: 2020-01-24 Created: 2020-01-24 Last updated: 2020-08-19Bibliographically approved
Organisations
Identifiers
ORCID iD: ORCID iD iconorcid.org/0000-0001-6834-086x

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