Half a loaf is (Not) Better than none: How austerity-related grievances and emotions triggered protests in Spain

Demonstrations have become more visible across Europe since the Great Recession. To clarify the connection between crisis and protest, we open the black box of crisis-related grievances, suggesting a typology for this subjective phenomenon and addressing the mediating role of emotions on protest. Us...

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Bibliographic Details
Authors: Galais, Carol, Lorenzini, Jasmine
Format: article
Status:Published version
Publication Date:2017
Country:España
Institution:Universitat Oberta de Catalunya (UOC)
Repository:O2, repositorio institucional de la UOC
OAI Identifier:oai:openaccess.uoc.edu:10609/93090
Online Access:https://hdl.handle.net/10609/93090
Access Level:Open access
Keyword:Spanish citizens
depression
austerity
ciudadanos españoles
crisis
austeridad
ciutadans espanyols
crisi
austeritat
Global Financial Crisis, 2008-2009
Crisi financera global, 2007-2009
Crisis financiera global, 2007-2009
Description
Summary:Demonstrations have become more visible across Europe since the Great Recession. To clarify the connection between crisis and protest, we open the black box of crisis-related grievances, suggesting a typology for this subjective phenomenon and addressing the mediating role of emotions on protest. Using panel data, we explore the dimensionality of thirty different items that Spanish citizens have claimed to endure as a consequence of the crisis, and then we test their potential of these grievances as triggers of protest. Results show that both financial deprivation and grievances related to worker-citizens' status and rights encourage protest activity. Crisis-related grievances trigger negative emotions, and curiously enough, both anger and anxiety boost protest. Our findings hold, regardless of political ideology, previous participation, or perceptions of self-efficacy.