Europeanisation: The EU Member States in Comparative Perspective - Einzelansicht

In recent years, the literature on Europeanisation has been thriving and various monograps and edited books are available.

Introductory reading:

Featherstone, K. and C. Radaelli (eds.) (2003). The Politics of Europeanization. Oxford University Press: Oxford.

Graziano, P. and M. Vink (eds.). (2008). Europeanization. New Research Agendas. Palgrave Macmillan: Hampshire and New York.

Additional literature will be provided.

This course deals with the effects of European integration on the Member States of the European Union (EU). Based on the Treaties, the process of European integration can be seen as institution building (the polity dimension) and policy making whereby policy processes are the result of the interplay of these institutions and the specific (and shared) competences at the EU level. As a result, the EU can be understood as a (sui generis) political system. 

The main assumption is that the political systems of the Member States change due to EU membership (and even before or without formal membership). These changes are commonly referred to as Europeanisation. From a research design perspective, European integration is thus seen as independent variable, whereas changes (or the lack thereof) in the Member States are seen as dependent variable.

Hence, two sets of research questions are possible. Empirical questions analyse the changes in national political systems (polity, politics and/or policies); normative questions investigate the legitimacy of these changes and whether (and how) Europeanisation affects the democratic foundations of the Member States, e.g. parties and systems of representation, the balance of power or national identities and political cultures.

In summary, this course combines comparative politics and European integration by fixating the latter as independent variable and by analysing changes in the Member States in a comparative perspective (dependent variable).

In doing so, the course pursues two objectives. The first objective is the empirical and normative analysis of Europeanisation. The second objective relates to the discipline of comparative politics more generally. Due to the intricate process of Europeanisation, the topic provides ample opportunities to reflect on a number of methodological challenges, e.g. the question of causality, the potential mechanisms of change and measurement of variables. By addressing these challenges, the course aims to complement the contents of the lecture and to facilitate students' understanding (and skills) of comparative research.

In order to pass the course, students will have to give a presentation and hand in a research paper in line with the methodological and formal requirements of the module.