Binding a Contested Nation: National Attachment and Cross‐Domain Solidarity in Taiwan

Abstract

ABSTRACT This paper examines how national attachment shapes reciprocal solidarity across issue domains. We conceptualize solidarity as the willingness to share burdens out of a sense of mutual obligation to overcome collective adversity. Because the costs of solidaristic action vary across domains, we argue that reciprocal solidarity is domain‐specific and national attachment can serve as a cross‐domain binding force. Using a nationally representative survey conducted in Taiwan in 2025, we compare reciprocal solidarity in the welfare and warfare domains. We find that reciprocal solidarity is higher in the warfare domain and the two domains show distinct distributions. Across both domains, national attachment is consistently associated with stronger reciprocal solidarity. Moreover, reflecting Taiwan's contested nationhood, the effect of national attachment is moderated by national identity in the welfare domain but not in the warfare domain, suggesting that the relationship between attachment and solidarity depends on policy context and conceptions of national identity.