Graduation Year

2023

Publication Date

Spring 2023

Comments

The author also presented this work at the 2023 John Wesley Powell Research Conference.

Abstract

After decades of struggling for autonomy, Catalonia, Spain has initiated a renewed independence movement. This paper seeks to answer the question: what economic motives are driving the possibility of Catalan secession from Spain, and how have these motives affected Catalonia’s economy and ways of life? I will focus on the politically and economically significant timeline of 2008-2019, analyzing indicators of economic health such as Gross Domestic Product, Foreign Direct Investment Rates, Unemployment, and the actions of Ibex-35 Businesses within Catalonia. Further, I will use public opinion polls on independence and national identity to gauge support for independence within the region, examining whether support for independence and Catalan identity vary during this time. I argue that when economic motives to support Catalan independence began to dwindle, political cries for independence became muted as a response to fears of secession creating an economic crisis.

Disciplines

Political Science

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