Long may they reign? Age and cohort effects on monarchism in the UK

Phillips, Joseph and Larner, Jac ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-5171-8851 2026. Long may they reign? Age and cohort effects on monarchism in the UK. Public Opinion Quarterly , nfag038. 10.1093/poq/nfag038

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Abstract

The monarchy is a long-standing British institution that enjoys high visibility across the world. However, there is concern that younger generations in the United Kingdom are losing attachment to the monarchy and increasingly support its abolition. However, it could also be that diffuse support for the monarchy increases as people gain experience with it (age effect) or from time-specific factors (period effects). To adjudicate between these possibilities, we estimate age, period, and cohort effects on support for continuing the British monarchy among the UK public. We find that support for continuing the monarchy increases considerably with age. Conversely, we detected few period effects, as public opinion has remained stable over time, and there is little clear evidence that support for the monarchy is lower among younger generations. These findings indicate that support for the monarchy will likely remain stable, and even increase, considering Britain’s aging population. The monarchy thus represents a valuable case for understanding how symbolic institutions persist in democratic societies despite lacking procedural fairness, accountability, or instrumental function, a pattern with implications for other non-performance-based institutions like appointed chambers, established churches, and ceremonial offices.

Item Type:	Article
Date Type:	Published Online
Status:	In Press
Schools:	Schools > Cardiff Law & Politics
Publisher:	Oxford University Press
ISSN:	0033-362X
Date of First Compliant Deposit:	13 March 2026
Date of Acceptance:	12 March 2026
Last Modified:	30 Jun 2026 12:39
URI:	https://orca.cardiff.ac.uk/id/eprint/185732

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