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Item type: Item , The absorption dilemma: an analysis of the national determinants affecting the absorption capacity of EU funds(2025) Vichi, GregorioThe paper investigates the domestic determinants influencing the absorption capacity of European Union (EU) Cohesion Policy funds among Member States (MS). The multilevel governance at which it operates together with the redistributive character aiming at socioeconomic cohesion, give to Cohesion Policy a pivotal role in European integration. Despite its significance, the efficiency of fund absorption differs by MS, posing a serious obstacle to intergovernmental negotiations in the field. Using data from the 2007-13 and 2014-20 programming periods, this study investigates the effect of governance quality, decentralisation, and the share of Cohesion funds in national public investment on the absorption capacity. Based on Europeanization, multilevel governance, and agency theories, the study takes a mixed-methods approach, integrating qualitative elite interviews with quantitative multivariate regression analysis. By integrating academic and practical perspectives, the paper identifies the key variables influencing the effective utilization of EU Cohesion funds, providing valuable insights for policy implementation and regional development.Item type: Item , Identifying and explaining capacities as determinants of EP’s legislative outputs(2023) Arregui, Javier; Peñalver, NereoAcademics discovered their interest for the European Parliament only recently, when treaties increased the legislative competences of the institution. Until today, a comprehensive theory for the power structures and the main determinants of influence in the EP legislative process is missing. This is an exploratory paper that tries first to identify the main sources of power and influence within the EP in a systematic way, and secondly, to explore how these mechanisms actually operate in a case study about the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) 2016/679. The paper shows, among other things, that in a majority of cases structural sources of power are the most relevant ones, then institutional and finally individual capacities.Item type: Item , From equilibrated dualism to asymmetric polycentrism: past and present of the presidential system of the EU(2023) Fernández Pasarín, Ana Mar; Mangenot, MichelThis article analyses the evolving nature, structure and organization of the government of the EU. In particular, it examines the institutionalisation and characteristics of its triumvirate presidential System (Commission, Council and European Council). It explores the original institutional design of the European presidency, traces its development until the Treaty of Lisbon and sheds light on its multimodal and fragmented contemporary functioning. The main idea is that the polycentric configuration of the EU presidential model contributes to revisiting the distribution of powers and, in particular, the system of member state representation within the EU polity. More concretely, the article argues that the reform of the presidency makes the distribution of roles and separation of powers more flexible than ever before by elevating inter-institutional imbrication to the level of principle of government of the EU. Beyond the questions of operability, efficiency and interinstitutional rivalries between the different presidencies, the presidency’s conversion into a political hydra raises the question of the direction of the institutional development of the EU as a whole.Item type: Item , The emperor without clothes?: explaining the choice for a flexible solidarity mechanism proposed in the asylum and migration management regulation(2023) Krämer, DamianDuring the so-called “refugee crisis”, when the Dublin system of refugee allocation failed, the Commission unsuccessfully attempted to establish a legislative framework for solidarity-based relocation. By proposing legal flexibility in its initiative for a Regulation on Asylum and Migration Management, the new von der Leyen Commission has resurrected the issue and brought it back on the legislative agenda. However, it appears to be counterintuitive that the Commission has proposed this regulation as it would constitute a dis-integrative step departing from policymaking through robust and uniform legal arrangements. But why did the Commission nevertheless decide to initiate such a proposal? This puzzle will be addressed in this research by applying a novel perspective that attempts to explain the Commission’s motivations in light of dis-integration and compliance research applied to the Commission’s peculiarities. Its considerations will be examined through a qualitative content analysis. The findings suggest that the Commission sees controlled dis-integration as the lesser evil and that it is heavily constraint by the interests of other actors giving much importance to a vocal minority against uniform relocation legislations.Item type: Item , Determinants of infringements in the implementation process of European Union legislation at the sub-national level(2022) Clinton, Peter; Arregui, JavierThis paper systematically investigates variations in infringements of EU rules by sub-state authorities (SSA). This has been understudied in EU compliance literature. The paper tests two different types of variables. On the one hand, we test structural factors in terms of the autonomy that SSA hold. We expect increasing autonomy of SSA to increase the transaction costs of implementing EU rules. On the other hand, we test individual level factors that might influence the implementation process across SSA. These factors are related to the preferences that SSA hold, their administrative capacity or their public opinion on the EU. We report, for the first time, the number of infringements for which SSA were responsible in 9 Member States. The results indicate that SSA with increased autonomy and the desire to exercise this autonomy is correlated with higher numbers of infringements. This suggests that transaction costs associated with multi-level policy implementation are important determinants of SSA infringements. The paper also reports that lower administrative capacities of SSA leads to higher levels of SSA infringements.Item type: Item , Informal capabilities of the Spanish permanent representation in Brussels and the influence of Spain in the European Union decision-making(2022) Perarnaud, Clément; Arregui, JavierTo what extent is the Spanish Permanent Representation to the EU comparable to other Member States in terms of capabilities? What are the indications of Spain’s strengths and weaknesses in EU legislative processes? Drawing on new qualitative and quantitative data sets, this article investigates the resources and capabilities mobilised by Spain as part of the EU public policymaking that takes place in Brussels. This research compares the human resources of the Spanish Permanent Representation, its internal coordination process, and its external engagement with EU stakeholders, to other member states. Doing so, this article illustrates possible implications of these variations for Spain’s bargaining success in the Council of the EU.Item type: Item , European Union regional policies: a convergence point of Spanish regions towards the EU(2022) Baraibar, Javier; Arregui, JavierThis paper investigates the main mechanisms of Europeanization of regional policies in Spain. Drawing from rationalist and constructivist approaches we study the inputs, processes and mechanisms of Europeanization as well as the outputs produced in Spain from 1986 to 2020. As there is little systematic research on the impact of EU regional policy on the Spanish regional policies, we use a number of different research strategies to fill this gap in the literature. The added value of the paper is to, first, increase the time span of study, and second, analyze the Europeanization of Spanish regions at the polity level (i.e. patterns of governance and domestic institutional change) as well as the policy level (i.e. Spanish regional policies). In addition, we also study the Europeanization of Spanish regions and a selected number of MS looking at aggregated data. Results show that both Spanish regional polity and policy have been Europeanized, as well as some autonomous communities and countries. These findings open the way for new avenues of research that study the circumstances under which regional policies are more effective both within and between Member States.Item type: Item , The European Union and domestic policy change of LGBT+ equality policies in Spain(2022) Cantó, Joel; Arregui, JavierEU policy-making has steadily incorporated gender equality as an important factor for the optimal functioning of democracies and market economies. Nonetheless, few studies have incorporated a comparative perspective to assess the Europeanization of LGBT+ Equality. This study examines the role of the European Union in driving domestic policy change in Spain and other three Member States from different backgrounds in political, social and cultural terms - Poland (Eastern), Finland (Nordic), and Italy (Southern Europe). Drawing on several datasets, this paper concludes that micro, meso, and macro factors have transformed Spain from a “consumer” of policies towards a “producer” within the the EU. In this sense, the factual and normative value of the acquis communitaire (mixed rational-sociological approach) and the rational use of these inputs by domestic actors to achieve strategic objectives (consequential approach) appear to be the main causal mechanisms behind this process. These findings open the way for new avenues of research regarding EU policy-making, and normative questions such as democratic legitimacy and the founding values of the Union, as well as implications for policies such as the European Neighbourhood Policy (ENP).Item type: Item , Defining Europe: cultural heritage policy and identity(2021) Ochoa Uriostegui, JorgeConstructivist theories from International Relations have long been interested in the European Union and its identity. Nonetheless, there is a lack of studies from the critical constructivist strand which, unlike its conventional counterpart, tries to explain how identities are created by discourse. This study seeks to explain how European identity is constructed and reinforced by the EU’s cultural heritage policy, using The European Heritage Label as case study. This initiative’s 48 selection panel reports, 38 promotional videos, and 10 site descriptions were used as data. The methodological approach employed was qualitative with Topoi Analysis as a sub-category of Critical Discourse Analysis. The results show that the EU’s cultural heritage policy reinforces the categories of inclusive identity, while at the same time, but with less frequency, also constructs a more exclusive European identity. These findings have relevant implications for theory, future research, and the EU itself.Item type: Item , Ganadores y perdedores en el proceso de integración: repensando la Unión desde una perspectiva de ciudadanía europea(2021) Arregui, JavierEsta investigación se centra en las implicaciones de las políticas de solidaridad y redistribución de la Unión Europea (UE) en el proceso de integración desde una perspectiva de ciudadanía europea. Partiendo del análisis de distintos tipos de fuentes estadísticas, este estudio busca responder quienes son los grupos sociales beneficiados y perjudicados de la solidaridad europea, así como los efectos que estas políticas tienen en los procesos de transformación política y social. Para responder a estas preguntas, se desarrolla una perspectiva teórica sobre las políticas de solidaridad de naturaleza redistributiva y se realiza un análisis sistemático sobre el apoyo al proceso de integración en los últimos cuarenta años desagregado por grupos sociales. Asimismo, este estudio compara las políticas presupuestarias de la UE y los beneficiarios principales de estas, y evalúa la evolución de la desigualdad entre Estados Miembro. Los resultados indican que la integración basada solamente en criterios de mercado ha llevado a un gap entre la elite y el resto de los ciudadanos sobre sus perspectivas de la UE. Estas conclusiones implican que este proceso debería ir más allá de lo puramente económico y/o instrumental, lo cual representa importantes consecuencias para cuestiones normativas como la evolución de la UE y la coexistencia de diferentes identidades o demos a nivel europeo, nacional y regional.Item type: Item , Gender equality and attitudes towards immigrants in Europe: a cross-national analysis(2021) Chieppa, Ludovica MariaAlthough previous research has revealed the impact of individual and contextual elements on attitudes toward immigrants across Europe, a gender-focused study of European anti-immigrant attitudes is still lacking. This study examines the role of individuals’ gender and macro structures of gender equality in shaping attitudes toward immigrants through the diffusion of benevolent and universalist human values. Drawing on the European Social Survey 2018 and the 2020 Gender Equality Index for 24 European countries, more gender-equal countries are found to be more tolerant toward immigrants, due to their higher self-transcendent values and lower conservation values. Also, no gender differences in attitudes toward immigrants have been found. These findings open the debate on the relationship between gender, gender equality, basic human values, and attitudes toward immigrants, suggesting new avenues for future research.Item type: Item , Determinants of individual support for European integration: the case of Ukraine(2021) Kovalska, OlhaThis paper investigates micro determinants of public support for EU integration in Ukraine as one of the Eastern Partnership (EaP) countries. Drawing from the vast literature focused on the post- communist Central and Eastern European states of the fifth EU enlargement, this study tests both utilitarian and value-based hypotheses of support. Giving a strong pro-EU orientation of Ukrainians and strengthening EU-Ukraine links amid the country’s complicated security situation, Ukraine can serve as a ‘hard test’ for checking the validity of predictors. As there is little systematic research on individual determinants of support for the EU in the EaP countries, in this paper I use data from an original survey conducted among Ukrainian youth as a case study for investigation. The results show that adherence to democratic values and personal exposure to the West are strong predictors of pro-EU attitudes. Linguistic divisions tangible in Ukraine’s society before Crimea’s annexation in 2014 were found to have a low salience among Ukrainian youth, yet regional background is still a significant determinant for differing opinions on the EU integration.Item type: Item , Supranational identification and migration attitudes in the European Union(2021) Sojka, AlexandraExisting research indicates that supranational identification in the European Union (EU) is associated with greater individual acceptance of international migration, pointing to a cosmopolitan logic in European identity. At the same time, social identity theory suggests a communitarian logic, as citizens who self-identify as Europeans should positively distinguish members of the European community and exhibit a higher acceptance of migrants from other EU member states than of other types of migrants. The goal of this article is to test which of these two logics prevails in European identifiers’ migration attitudes. For this purpose, we develop a set of multilevel regression models of recent Eurobarometer data (2014-2017) to explore the effects of European identification on individual preference for internal migrants in the EU. The paper’s main contribution is to show that adding a cosmopolitan layer of identification to the pre-existing national identities does not preclude the logic of identity demarcation in supranational communities. Instead, these processes become more complex. As illustrated by the case of perceptions of migrants from different origins, European identification entails both cosmopolitan and communitarian effects for individual attitudes. These findings challenge the prevailing normative understanding of European identity as inherently inclusive.Item type: Item , Why is identification as European more prevalent among the highly educated than among the less educated?(2020) Díez Medrano, JuanFor more than forty years, researchers and pro-European policy makers have puzzled about what leads individuals to identify themselves as Europeans (Belot, 2010; Díez Medrano, 2019). As of 2020, neither policy-makers nor researchers have made as much progress as they would have liked. European identification is certainly prevalent in the population of the European Union, but not as prevalent and deep as national identification. It is also unclear whether this prevalence has anything to do with policies and strategies initiated by European Union institutions. Whereas European symbols and policies have likely failed to create a European demos, researchers have not been much more successful in unearthing major correlates of European identification. However, one of the most consistent findings in the literature is the relationship between education and European identification. More educated individuals identify themselves as European more than less-educated ones do. This working paper is an attempt to clarify the role of Education as a socio-economic variable and the relationship between education and European identification.