<abstract xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml">

<p>The original concept of soft power embraced the belief that culture, values and foreign policy practice are the basic resources upon which this type power is based. This article argues that popular national leaders can also – maybe even more so – be treated as soft power resources as their popularity and trustworthiness go hand in hand with the positive public opinion about their countries abroad. This hypothesis is tested against survey data collected from all over the globe by the U.S.-based polling institute Pew Research Center over the last two decades. The data shows a strong positive correlation between the public confidence in a leader and the view of their country abroad in almost every case that was examined. The view of a country among foreign audiences often changes with the change of its top leadership. The results of this reseach cast doubt on whether national culture and values rather than national leaders are the preeminent source of soft power of any given country in international politics.</p>
</abstract>

The original concept of soft power embraced the belief that culture, values and foreign policy practice are the basic resources upon which this type power is based. This article argues that popular national leaders can also – maybe even more so – be treated as soft power resources as their popularity and trustworthiness go hand in hand with the positive public opinion about their countries abroad. This hypothesis is tested against survey data collected from all over the globe by the U.S.-based polling institute Pew Research Center over the last two decades. The data shows a strong positive correlation between the public confidence in a leader and the view of their country abroad in almost every case that was examined. The view of a country among foreign audiences often changes with the change of its top leadership. The results of this reseach cast doubt on whether national culture and values rather than national leaders are the preeminent source of soft power of any given country in international politics.

Popular Leader as an Asset of Soft Power: The Ratings of National Leaders and their Countries Abroad

Baltic Journal of Law & Politics

This work is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 3.0 License.

The original concept of soft power embraced the belief that culture, values and foreign policy practice are the basic resources upon which this type power is...

Popular Leader as an Asset of Soft Power: The Ratings of National Leaders and their Countries Abroad

Published Online: Feb 26, 2024

Page range: 151 - 175

Received: Oct 17, 2023

Accepted: Dec 27, 2023

DOI: https://doi.org/10.2478/bjlp-2023-0018

Keywords
Soft power, political leader, opinion polls, country image, international relations

© 2023 Vytautas Isoda, published by Sciendo

This work is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 3.0 License.

Popular Leader as an Asset of Soft Power: The Ratings of National Leaders and their Countries Abroad

Published Online: Feb 26, 2024

Page range: 151 - 175

Received: Oct 17, 2023

Accepted: Dec 27, 2023

DOI: https://doi.org/10.2478/bjlp-2023-0018

KeywordsSoft power, political leader, opinion polls, country image, international relations

© 2023 Vytautas Isoda, published by Sciendo

This work is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 3.0 License.

Keywords
Soft power, political leader, opinion polls, country image, international relations