Decentring European Governance

Conforming neither to the hierarchical and bureaucratic organization of the European nation-state nor the anarchical structure of international organizations, the European Union (EU) and its predecessors provide an exemplary site for developing a decentred approach to the study of governance. The book offers an analysis of the formation and transformation of the EU as an example of governance above the nation-state and is framed by the recognition that the construction of the EU has resulted in variegated and decentred forms of governance. The chapters look at distinct aspects of EU governance to bring to light the influence of elite narratives, scientific rationalities, local traditions and meaningful practices in the making and remaking of European governance. As such, each chapter offers a unique contribution to the study of the EU. In doing so, the book challenges dominant narratives of European integration and policymaking that appeal to reified rationalities and social structures, and uncovers the contingency and conflict endemic to European governance. This text will be of key interest to scholars and students of European Union politics, European politics/studies, governance and, more broadly, to public management, international organizations, anthropology and sociology.

Celebrating the existence of contending theories of European integration, the book begins with a critical exploration of the concepts and theories used to examine this unique policy, presenting theoretically informed, empirical studies of the origin of the key themes of European governance, territorial politics, domestic-European linkages and the EU's foreign policy affairs.

This collection provides a balanced evaluation of multi-level governance. Written by international experts of policy-making in the European Union, each contribution builds on common conceptual definitions, critically debating their adaptation to policy-specific contexts and investigating their usefulness for conducting empirical research. This engaging text uses case studies to identify the specific changes that have occurred in power relations across different levels of the EU system. With varying emphasis on state and non-state actors, on country comparisons and international processes, the reader is invited to join a fruitful dialogue among the contributors about the symbiotic relationship of multi-level analysis with other conceptual innovations such as transnational regulation, network formation or market internationalization. This book confronts sophisticated theoretical reasoning with the actual realities of policy-making and is therefore essential reading for all those interested in the risks and opportunities of a comparative-interdisciplinary approach to European governance.

A study of the impact of European governance on the time of national policymakers and institutions. A theoretical approach to the changing demands of policy-planning as the focus shifts to the present and new demands and rhythms influence European decision-making.

The term of governance and the way it has been used by European institutions have elicited much interest in the academic world. However, the notion and its uses have often been studied only in terms of intellectual development or network analysis. Such researches leave us in the dark on a key question. What meaning does this concept actually hold to the actors involved? To what degree do they have a shared definition of the term? Does “European governance” work as a self-fulfilling prophecy, structuring the space of the EU and the practices of its actors?

This book examines some of the major origins of change in institutions and policies in European governance. The authors combine a sophisticated institutional analysis with in-depth insights into European policies across a wide variety of policy fields. The fields examined are higher education, employment, research, police co-operation, as well as foreign affairs, trade, energy, and security and defence policy. Presenting the fruit of years of collaboration in an EU-funded Research Training Network, the authors expand the mechanisms through which political actors transform apparent deadlock into actual change in European policy making.

In recent years there has been a considerable effort in some transnational organizations and institutions to confront a crisis of legitimacy by promising more accountability and openness. This volume takes as its central focus the role of accountability in democratic governance, and attempts to position a broad understanding of the notion of accountability within the overall context of the evolving political system of governance in Europe and in particular of the European Union. Bringing together new work by some of the leading scholars in the field, this volume considers the relationship between accountability and a wide range of other themes in European governance such as problems of representation, transparency, bureaucracy, and transnational relations. The volume also deals with the role of accountability in multi-level governance, and its relationship to both direct democracy and civil society. This book was published as a special issue of West European Politics.

This groundbreaking new textbook offers extensive coverage of EU External Action studies, from its major concepts to the key theories in the field. Over the past decades, the European Union has progressively developed into a significant global actor in an increasing number of policy fields. This long-awaited volume looks into different ways of conceptualizing the EU as a global actor, the processes and impact of EU external action, explanations offered by IR and integration theories, the discursive, normative, practice and gender 'turns', and the 'decentring agenda' for EU external action. The book offers a reader-friendly guidance on these various ways in which to study the EU as a global actor: each chapter introduces one concept, approach or theory and illustrates its application by a case study of EU external action. In drawing the different perspectives together, the book underscores that 'EU External Action Studies' is becoming an academic speciality in its own right. Written by leading experts, the volume will make essential reading for students, scholars and practitioners of EU external action. EU External Action Studies nowadays attract attention from scholars and students in International Relations (IR), Foreign Policy Analysis and (interdisciplinary) EU Studies, as well as from practitioners.