Europeanisation in new member and candidate states

Abstract

The Europeanisation of candidate countries and new members is a rather recent research area that has grown strongly since the early 2000s. Research in this area has developed primarily in the context of the EU's eastern enlargement. A small number of theoretically informed book-length studies of the EU's influence on the Central and Eastern European candidate countries have provided a generalisable conceptual framework for this research area, drawing on the debate between rationalist institutionalist and constructivist institutionalist approaches in International Relations and Comparative Politics. This framework makes these studies highly compatible with analyses of the Europeanisation of member states, with which they also share one key empirical finding, namely that the impact of the EU on candidate countries is differential across countries and issue areas. At the same time, the theoretical implications of these findings appear more clear-cut than in the case of the Europeanisation of member states: rationalist institutionalism, with its focus on the external incentives underpinning EU conditionality and the material costs incurred by domestic veto players, appears well-suited to explaining variation in the patterns of Europeanisation in candidate countries. A very recent development within this research agenda is the focus on the Europeanisation of new member states. While the study of the EU's impact during the early years of membership was hitherto primarily a subfield of analyses of the Europeanisation of member states, it has now become an extension of studies of candidate countries by analysing the impact of accession on the dynamics of pre-accession Europeanisation and how durable and distinctive the patterns of candidate Europeanisation are in the post-accession stage.

When and How Does Europe Matter? Higher Education Policy Change in Croatia, Serbia and Slovenia

“…404 2003; Radaelli, 2003;Sedelmeier, 2011), providing a predominantly institutionalist perspective on the relationship between European policy initiatives in HE and the domestic policy dynamics. The potential role of (domestic) actors is not entirely downplayed; theoretical perspectives used in this article rely both on the more traditional sociological institutionalism and on its more actor-oriented rational-choice variety.…”

“…-using insights from comparative politics and international relations studies on the Europeanization of public policy (Börzel and Risse, 2003;Sedelmeier, 2011). It builds on an extensive literature review focusing on European integration and transformation of HE (Elken et al, 2011) and adaptation of theoretical perspectives on Europeanization to the HE context (Vukasovic, 2013).…”

The Impact of EU Political Conditionality on Minority Rights in Western Balkans: Insights from the Croatian Enlargement

“…(Enlargement Strategy 2010-2011, p. 7) A particular attention was given to Roma minority as a vulnerable group most affected by the economic crises. In just two countries, Croatia and Kosovo, the Commission suggested to work on for the further integration of minorities especially Serb minority (Enlargement Strategy 2010-2011. In the following Enlargement Strategy, FYR of Macedonia is mentioned as a country that need to address the challenges concerning the respect for and the protection of minorities (Enlargement Strategy 2011.…”

Human Rights in the EU’s Conditionality Policy Towards Albania: The Practice of Sub-committee Meetings

“…Interest in the term 'conditionality' grew as the EU called for the enlargement of its borders to East European states (Cowles et al, 2001;Olsen, 2005;Jordan, 2005). The EU started monitoring the adjustment of these countries to the EU's rules and regulations (better known as acquis communautaire), as well as the fulfilment of specific membership conditionality criteria concerning issues such as human rights (Sedelmeier, 2011). The Copenhagen criteria, the acquis communautaire, and other democracy-, human rights-and rule-of-law-related conditionality has been essential components of EU policy towards enlargement countries (Schimmelfennig, 2005); a process which continues with their application to Western Balkan countries like Albania.…”