The basis of forming a cultural identity of individualism is pretty fucking simple - in a country that offers so many benefits (weather, nature, food, fairly beautiful women) one turns to the outside and tends to disregard society and collective identity.
This is true for all southern states.
Of course, what I said is horribly simple and doesn't capture it in the fullest, but it's the best I can do to summarize it in a post.
For the most part though, it is impossible to create a collective identity. SO many countries attempted this during communism - nationalistic ideas were forced upon people, some who denied them were literally killed and a WHOLE generation was indoctrinated to the extreme with these ideas in order to do what you want.
What was the result?
As soon as communism fell and the secret police no longer enforced this, 80% of former communists declared themselves pure democrats. And they reverted back to individualism immediately.
No my friend, that experiment has failed. However, it proved one thing. A thing that is unpopular and would get me lynched if I ever voiced it. You see, communism is a failed ideology. However, somehow, it fared pretty well in the east, compared to democracy. This baffling outcome was the result of its dictatorship, whereupon ALL the individualism was concentrated in a very small clique and they were already given ultimate power - so politics wasn't exactly a road to success. Oh, sure, you fought tooth and nail to get into the communist party, but being incompetent and corrupt got you thrown in jail, because the elite didn't need your stupid ass to stay in power - they'd stay anyway.
What that experiment proved is that all us southerners and westerners with our horrible individualism and such have only one road - dictatorship.
That'd never happen, but it doesn't stop it from being a very unpleasant truth.
Nothing I said iabove has any relation whatsoever to italian politics or our discussion to it.