Den Europeiska Unionen är en mångfacetterad samling länder med ett brett spektra av historisk bakgrund, geografisk placering och ekonomiska förhållanden. I denna uppsats undersöks huruvida en gemensam europeisk identitet kan bidra till en ökad tillit från medborgarna i unionen till EU som institution. Uppsatsens teoretiska underlag består av tidigare forskning. Denna forskning skapar ett fundament för den statistiska modell som används för att besvara frågeställningen. Med hjälp av data samlad ur bland annat Eurobarometerrapporter tar uppsatsen, via multipel linjär regression, fram en modell som förklarar förhållandet mellan den beroende variabeln ”förtroende för EU” och de oberoende variablerna ”uppfattning av gemensam europeisk identitet”, ”avstånd till Bryssel”, ”BNP per capita” och ”antal år som medlem i EU”. Resultatet visar en koppling mellan en högre grad av upplevd gemensam identitet hos medborgarna i ett land och ett ökat förtroende för EU. Vidare visar modellen ett negativt samband mellan förtroendet för EU och ett stigande värde på var och en av de övriga förklaringsvariablerna. Med andra ord: ju längre avstånd till Bryssel, ju högre BNP per capita och ju längre medlemskap i unionen desto lägre förtroende känner den genomsnittlige medborgaren för EU. / The European Union is a diverse group of countries characterized by a wide spectra of historical background, geographical location and economic situation. The topic of this essay is whether a common European identity can contribute to an increased level of trust from the citizens towards the EU as an institution. Previous research constitute the theoretical basis of the essay. Using this research, I create the foundation for the statistical model used to answer the question at issue. Using multiple linear regression on data gathered from Eurobarometer reports and other sources, I create a statistical model that explains the relationship between the dependent variable “trust in EU” and the independent variables “feeling of being an EU-citizen”, “distance to Brussels”, “BNP per capita” and “number of years as member of EU”. The results shows a connection between a higher level of feeling of being an EU-citizen and a higher level of trust in EU. Moreover, the model shows a negative connection between trust in EU and an increasing value on each of the other independent variables. In other words: the further away the average citizen is from Brussels, the higher level of BNP per capita her country has and the longer her country has been a member of the EU, the lower trust she has in the EU.

The three countries of Central America El Salvador, Guatemala and Honduras, which form the so-called Northern Triangle, are among the most violent countries in the world. One of the actors of local violence are gangs maras. This thesis "Armed Violence - Gangs Maras - Challenge and Threat to the National State in El Salvador, Guatemala and Honduras." deals with the problem of transnational gangs Mara Salvatrucha (MS- 13) and Barrio 18 (M-18) and with the interaction between maras and society. The aim of this thesis is to understand the complexity of the maras phenomen and to provide its detailed analysis. Maras were originally founded in Los Angeles by Mexican (M-18) and Salvadorian (MS-13) immigrants. As a result of tighter U.S. immigration policy, some members were deported to their country of origin - to the northern triangle countries. The strong cultural identity of maras appealed to thousands of young people and helped in the rapid expansion of the gangs. Maras are currently regarded as one of the greatest threats to the Central American region. Since 2003 the governments have led a repressive campaign to combat maras, which is supported by media and which sought to involve military in police actions. However, the politics of firm hand haven't had desired effect. Labeling maras as the main...