Support for Further Enlargement of the EU: Statistical Analysis of Regional Differences

Abstract:

The present paper is based on the statistical analysis of regional differences at the level of the European Union, according to the Eurobarometer survey conducted in 2014, in relation to the question of support for further enlargement of the EU regions. The aim of the paper is to demonstrate the existence of statistically significant variability in support for further EU enlargement by applying adequate statistical methods—the ANOVA method and the Kruskal–Wallis test.

A total of two EU regions have been identified that are, in accordance with a factor of urbanization, placed in the framework of three separate areas divided by type or size of the community. From the standpoint of the region of the old member states (EU-15), confirmation is found that there are significant differences among regional units in terms of support for further enlargement of the EU. On the other hand, from the viewpoint of the region of the new member states (EU-13), it has been confirmed that there are no significant differences among regional units with respect to the support for further enlargement of the EU. Such research findings have certain theoretical and practical implications.