FEATURE1 October 2021

Feeling proud: How is patriotism evolving?

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Liam Kay-McClean

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Patriotism can be a divisive subject to navigate, with strong views for and against. Could it be changing into something more positive? Liam Kay reports.

Flags of the United States and the United Kingdom flying against a blue sky

From saluting the flag and respecting your country’s history to cheering for the national football team, there are many facets to traditional views of patriotism. In a world where people increasingly question their country’s past and institutions, however, is patriotism evolving?

Pew Research Center ran its Global Attitudes research in late 2020, looking at how people’s views of their country and citizenship changed between 2016 and 2020. The survey ran from 10 November to 23 December 2020, and surveyed 4, 069 adults in France, Germany, the UK and the US, with 26 focus groups also taking place in the US and UK. This was compared with research by Pew from 2016.

“Patriotism is not necessarily seen by everyone to be a good thing, ” says Laura Silver, senior researcher at Pew Research Center. “Respecting our soldiers or standing for the flag are clear values for a segment of the US population, but for others the idea that patriotism is actually negative or distorted is ...