Regional Integration: Reflections on a Decade of Theoretical Efforts

Abstract

The appearance of major studies by Karl Deutsch and Ernst Haas in the late 1950's won for integration theory a prominent position among the contemporary approaches to the study of international relations. A decade later its achievements are very much a matter of debate. While many students of integration theory have been led, by disappointment with results, to focus their attention on smaller and more manageable units, such as local communities and city-suburb relations, others continue investigations at the international level.

Field of Dreams: the Discursive Construction of EU Studies, Intellectual Dissidence and the Practice of ‘Normal Science’

“…However, we need to take a closer look at the data here. The citation pattern for Hoffmann (), while distinct from his fellow intergovernmentalist Hansen (), resembles that of some of the key works of Ernst Haas, commonly agreed to be the leader of the neo‐functionalist school. Figure illustrates the citation pattern for Haas (), an article with 609 lifetime citations.…”

“…The paper has far fewer lifetime citations than Hoffmann () (136 to Hoffmann's 1332), but it is the pattern of citation rather than the absolute number that is of interest. Figure suggests much more of a ‘steady state’ pattern in the case of Hansen (). Indeed, Hansen's article was cited more in absolute terms (21 to 17) in the first five years of its life (1970 to 1974) than Hoffmann's.…”

“…One way to check if these results are exceptional is to look at the citation patterns of other articles that should occupy roughly equivalent positions in the field. The most obvious comparator for Hoffmann () is Hansen () – an article that presented an overview of integration theory to date and, as a result, drew broadly intergovermentalist conclusions. The paper has far fewer lifetime citations than Hoffmann () (136 to Hoffmann's 1332), but it is the pattern of citation rather than the absolute number that is of interest.…”

Political Integration as a Multidimensional Phenomenon Requiring Multivariate Measurement

“…12 " On the other hand, in integration systems among developing countries the problem of regional imbalances is a major one. 121 There have been very few efforts to systematically analyze possible changes in the distribution of political benefits, such as access to or influence over decisionmakers, political power, etc. Andre Gorz, 122 for example, argues that integration advantages those who are able to organize effectively and quickly at the transnational level (businessmen) at the expense of those groups whose power base is limited to the national level (trade unions).…”

The Organization of African Unity in the Subordinate African Regional System

“…The nature of the system is reflected in a regional organization designed to foster mutual coordination and cooperation on matters of common interest to its members. As is usually the case in the development of new analytical concepts, however, there are several issues of contention concerning the utility of the subordinate regional systems concept (Hanson 1969, Rye 1968, Saenz 1969. This article will not attempt to deal with all the unanswered questions relating to regional integration.…”