We explore the impact of fiscal austerity on three different dimensions of public opinion in 26 European Union countries (consumer confidence, attitude toward national authorities, and European institutions) on annual data between 1997 and 2017. Our main finding is that the independent effect of a tighter fiscal stance on public opinion is not large and, when present, seems to closely follow the impact of fiscal austerity on economic activity. Our results therefore are inconsistent with the view that fiscal austerity necessarily implies a negative effect on public opinion and a decline in popularity of national and European institutions.

中文翻译：

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为紧缩疯狂？财政整顿对舆论的影响

我们通过 1997 年至 2017 年的年度数据，探讨了财政紧缩对 26 个欧盟国家三个不同维度的公众舆论（消费者信心、对国家当局的态度和欧洲机构的态度）的影响。我们的主要发现是公众舆论收紧财政立场并不大，而且当出现时，似乎密切关注财政紧缩对经济活动的影响。因此，我们的结果与财政紧缩必然意味着对公众舆论的负面影响以及国家和欧洲机构受欢迎程度下降的观点不一致。