Mikheil Sarjveladze
PhD student
University of Cologne

The combination of an uninformed society and emotional attitudes toward European integration is a bad one, and one that can result in wild public mood swings. Based on my observations, perceptions of European integration—particularly among members of society who have not had the opportunity to live, travel, or study in the EU, or to receive much information about it, can be divided into three main strands: a) hope, that the socio-economic situation for much of the population will change for the better; b) apathy: “no one in the EU will accept us, anyways”; and c) animosity toward Europe: “They are stealing our Georgianness.”