All Europeans think that their own country is the most compassionate, and nearly everyone judges the Germans to be the least compassionate, although both France and Germany gave that title to Britain.

  But a few eyebrows will be raised by an authoritative new survey’s findings that the French agree they are the continent’s most arrogant people and that the Greeks rate themselves as the most trustworthy.

  The Washington DC-based Pew Research Centre polled more than 7,600 people in eight European countries about their attitudes towards the EU, their governments and their neighbours.

  The findings throw up intriguing insights into new national stereotypes in the wake of the Eurozone crisis, which has seen Germany take a leading role in imposing unpopular austerity measures on the struggling economies of southern Europe.

  Everyone, including the British, agreed that the Germans were the most trustworthy people in the EU, apart from the Greeks, who awarded themselves that accolade.

  The traditional antagonism between the UK and France is reflected in the survey, with Britons judging their neighbours over the Channel to be the least trustworthy and the most arrogant.   The poll highlighted an internal conflict among the French, who considered themselves to be both the least arrogant and the most arrogant country in Europe.

  All Europeans think that their own country is the most compassionate, and nearly everyone judges the Germans to be the least compassionate, although both France and Germany gave that title to Britain.

  Nigel Farage, the leader of the UK Independence Party, welcomed the findings, joking: “I am delighted that the Eurocrats have failed to crush national stereotyping, which is what makes Europe a great continent.”

  The Pew report – which was based on surveys carried out in Britain, France, Germany, Italy, Spain, Greece, Poland and the Czech Republic – concluded that the European Union was “the new sick man of Europe”.

  The proportion of Europeans with a favourable view of the EU has plunged from 60 per cent last year to 45 per cent now.

  The UK may be considered the most Eurosceptic country, but its support for the union has barely changed in the past 12 months, slipping only two points to 43 per cent.

  By contrast, France’s backing for the EU has slipped dramatically, from 60 per cent last year to 41 per cent today.

  On the politically charged question of whether to remain in the EU, Britons are split evenly, with 46 per cent wanting to leave the union and the same percentage wanting to stay.

  The Pew report’s authors said: “The prolonged economic crisis has created centrifugal forces that are pulling European public opinion apart, separating the French from the Germans and the Germans from everyone else.”

  They added: "The effort over the past half century to create a more united Europe is now the principal casualty of the euro crisis. The European project now stands in disrepute across much of Europe.”

  The only European leader rated highly by their own voters was the German Chancellor Angela Merkel, who received a 74 per cent approval rating.

  Prime Minister David Cameron was next highest with a positive score of 37 per cent among the British public, although he can take some comfort from the fact that 58 per cent of Poles and half of all French people think he is doing a good job.

  Despite the gloomy economic outlook and growing disillusionment with the EU, there were strong majorities of more than 60 per cent in favour of keeping the Euro in the five countries polled that use the single currency.

  所有欧洲人都认为自己的民族是最富有同情心的，而几乎每一个欧洲人都评价德国人最冷漠。尽管在法国人和德国人眼中，“最冷漠”这个称号应该颁给英国。

  但最近一项权威调查的结果可能会让少数一些人大跌眼镜——法国人承认他们是欧洲大陆上最傲慢的民族，而希腊人评价自己为“最值得信赖”。

  位于华盛顿特区的皮尤研究中心（Pew Research Centre）对八个欧洲国家、超过7,600位民众进行民意检测，就欧盟、本国政府及邻国问题询问了他们的态度。

  调查结果为研究新的国家印象提供了有趣的视角，这种新的印象是在欧元流通区产生危机后新出现的。在这场危机的中，面对南欧窘迫的经济状况，德国人一直带头实施着不受欢迎的货币紧缩政策。

  除了希腊人以外，包括英国人在内的每一个欧洲人，都赞同日耳曼民族是最值得信赖的民族。在这一点上希腊人无疑使自己处在了一个尴尬的境地，因为他们之前把这个殊荣颁给了自己。

  英国与法国之间长久以来的敌对情绪在这次调查中也有所体现——英国人评价他们这位隔海相望的邻国“最不可信赖”和“最自大”。该调查突出了法国的内部矛盾——法国民众评价自己既“傲慢”又“谦逊”。

  所有欧洲人都认为自己的民族是最富有同情心的，而几乎每一个欧洲人都评价德国人最冷漠。尽管在法国人和德国人眼中，“最冷漠”这个称号应该颁给英国。

  英国独立党领导人奈吉尔 法拉奇（Nigel Farage）高兴地接受了这些调查结果，并调侃道：“我很高兴看到欧共体并没有瓦解欧洲各国给人留下的刻板印象，毕竟正是这些造就了一个个伟大的民族。”

  皮尤研究中心的报告结论是根据在英国、法国、德国、意大利、西班牙、希腊、波兰和捷克共和国的调查结果总结得出的。结论称：欧盟成为欧洲新病夫。

  对欧盟持赞扬态度的欧洲人占欧洲总人口的比例，已从去年的60%降至现今的45%。

  英国可能被认为是最反对欧洲一体化的国家，但是在过去一年里英国人民对欧盟的支持率仅仅下降了两个百分点，为43%。

  相反的，法国人民对欧盟的支持率有了急剧的下降——从去年的60%降至41%。

  就在欧盟的去留这个政治问题上，英国人的态度分布得很平均：46%的人赞成脱离欧盟，而相同人数的英国人则希望能够留在欧盟。

  皮尤调查的发起人评价道：“长期的经济危机正在产生着强大的离心力，这使欧盟面临着分崩离析的危险境地。法国人正与德国人产生隔阂，而德国人正在与整个欧洲大陆分离。”

  他们还评价道：“过去半个世纪来，想要让欧洲成为一个密不可分的联盟的努力正是如今欧元区危机产生的主要原因。欧洲计划目前在欧洲多数国家都声名狼藉。”

  目前唯一一位受到选民高度评价的欧洲国家领导人是德国总理安吉拉·默克尔，她的支持率高达74%。

  另一位受本国民众较高评价的领导人为英国首相卡梅伦，他在英国民众当中的支持率达到37%。而58%的波兰民众和全数的法国民众都对他的政绩颇为赞许，这点或许可以弥补他没有获得“最受选民好评”称号的失落。

  尽管经济前景惨淡，欧盟的状况也不尽人意，受访的国家中仍有五个国家的超过60%的民众赞成保留欧元这种单一货币。