ABSTRACT
North America and Europe – the soft power outliers As outlined by the Monocle Soft Power Survey (2014), which measures nations’ attractiveness (and thus influence within the world), eight out of the ten highest-ranking countries come from only two regions: North America or Europe.1 The findings have proved to be consistent over the years and allow us to draw two conclusions about the outliers of soft power. First, the ability to attract is strongly correlated with a country’s development, measured in both economic terms (gross domestic product, per capita income, level of industrialization etc.) and human development terms (life expectancy, standard of living and literacy level). Second, the highest-ranking countries have moved beyond simply assuring security and prosperity. They also guarantee their societies the respect of core liberal democratic values such as the rule of law, human rights and social justice. The combination of prosperity and respect of personal freedoms generates a powerful message resonating positively with wider publics around the world. And it is this blend that has made North America and Europe unquestionable soft power outliers.
