Economic rationality and perceptions of the European integration : local Poland ten years of the accession

The main aim of the following chapter is to analyse how Polish local communities weigh up and perceive the economic costs and benefits of European integration ten years after accession. In this case, the qualitative analysis of perceptions of the integration process introduces a new insight into the materialistic approach to such complex political events as European integration. Therefore, the chapter is built on the hypothesis that increased fiscal transfers from the European budget translate into positive attitudes towards the integration process. Such an approach will allow the confrontation of one of the most powerful assumptions of the economic model with a qualitative cost-benefit analysis performed at a local level.