e-Repositori UPF :: Articles (Institut Barcelona Estudis Internacionals (IBEI))

Enviaments recents

The limits of passive power: competition law in Singapore and the EU's global legal influence
(Wiley, 2025) Karagiannis, Yannis
As the United States retreats from global rule-making, the European Union (EU) must decide whether to shape global legal regimes actively or rely on its market power. Optimists claim that EU norms spread passively as a result of the Brussels Effect (BE), while sceptics point to transnational processes such as conditionality, policy learning and hybridization-core to Transnational Legal Orders (TLO) theory. This article tests these competing explanations in a doubly most likely case: competition policy, where BE is seen as pervasive, and Singapore, cited as a model BE case. The findings support TLO theory over BE. Although Singapore's competition law includes EU-like provisions, these are not the result of BE-style diffusion but emerge from broader transnational interactions. This suggests that the EU cannot rely on passive regulatory spillovers to extend its legal influence. Active engagement remains necessary to sustain global convergence with EU norms.
The new EU–Arab league dialogue: the contours of a cooperation
(Taylor & Francis, 2015) Johansson-Nogués, Elisabeth
Relations between the European Union and the League of Arab States have seen a new impetus in recent years. A new meeting structure was adopted in 2012 and a new work programme that encompasses the fields of energy, culture, empowerment of women, legal affairs, human rights, humanitarian assistance, crisis management and electoral processes has been launched. In 2014 the parties agreed to pursue deepened institutional contacts and cooperation through an EU–LAS Strategic Dialogue to discuss regional conflicts and terrorism. This Profile will outline the main traits of the new EU–Arab League dialogue. We note that the EU–LAS dialogue allows the EU to overcome some of the shortcomings of other frameworks of EU–Arab cooperation, although others still remain.
Authoritarianism’s reemergence in North Africa and the Middle East: the cases of Algeria, Egypt, Morocco and Tunisia
(Taylor & Francis, 2025) Johansson-Nogués, Elisabeth; Rivera Escartin, Adrià
In the past decade, some of the countries of the Middle East and North Africa experienced large street protests demanding political change, leading to different degrees of either democratisation and/or political liberalisation. However, such changes were short lived, as authoritarian regimes in the region have either reemerged or deepened their grip on power. In this paper, we want to perform a process tracing of the mechanisms that have produced a reassertion of autocracy in Algeria, Egypt, Morocco and Tunisia, with the view to understand why political transformation has been stunted in these countries. We are interested in mapping out what triggers explain authoritarian reemergence and theorising on their relative importance for the outcome. Our findings indicate that the necessary causal mechanisms for authoritarian reemergence are threefold: personalist-style leadership (‘strongman’), clientelistic networks, and control over the domestic narratives. Our test for additional causal mechanisms yielded inconclusive or only case-specific evidence.
A new measurement model and database of the democratic qualities of regulatory bodies
(Policy Press, 2025) Maman, Libby; Jordana, Jacint; Levi-Faur, David; Guaschino, Edoardo; Schomaker, Rahel; Van-Zimmeren, Esther
Transparency, accountability, participation and inclusiveness are central concepts in the literature on public administration. They are considered qualities that enable administrative bodies to share power with social and political actors and strengthen their democratic nature. These qualities have also been recognized as crucial for regulatory bodies, especially because of the technocratic nature of these bodies. Despite their importance, the literature provides limited measurement of these qualities, which means that neither the extent to which regulatory bodies are formally required to provide for transparency, accountability, participation and inclusiveness nor the extent to which they do so in practice can be captured and compared adequately. To address this gap, we develop measures of 'de jure' and 'de facto' transparency, accountability, participation and inclusiveness from a novel data set of 49 national, subnational and supranational regulatory bodies in three sectors (data protection, food safety and finance) and in nine countries. We use Item Response Theory methods to validate the indicators and their relative weight in the measure, providing a tool substantiated by comprehensive data to assess how regulatory bodies enhance democratic governance.
Blame shifting in autocracies following large-scale disasters: evidence from Turkey
(Cambridge University Press, 2025) Goldring, Edward; Schmid, Jonas Willibald; Apaydin, Fulya
Large-scale disasters, particularly when handled poorly, often spark popular outrage and threaten an autocrat's hold on power. Autocrats frequently employ blame-shifting strategies to redirect public anger and weather these storms. We examine whether blame shifting after a large-scale disaster helps or hurts an autocrat's popularity through a mixed-methods research design in the electoral autocracy of Turkey in April-July 2023, following the February 2023 earthquakes. An online survey experiment (n = 3,839) identifies the effects of blaming the aftermath of the earthquakes on the opposition, a force majeure, private construction companies, or a government minister, while focus groups explore the mechanisms behind these effects. We find that blaming the opposition or a force majeure leads to a backlash, especially among those more able to critically evaluate information. Focus groups reveal that these backlash effects are driven by voters' dismay at electoral opportunism and the incumbent's polarizing language following a large-scale disaster.
Space policy and industrial development in middle powers: Malaysia and Turkey in comparative perspective
(Elsevier, 2025) Apaydin, Fulya
In recent years, several countries from Argentina to Turkey to Malaysia have significantly increased their investments in national space agencies as part of their industrial development program. Smaller and more efficient satellite designs, coupled with the availability of commercial off-the-shelf components, have reduced the barriers to entry for countries with limited resources and empowered new players to embark on space missions that were once deemed prohibitively expensive. This shift represents a critical change in space exploration and utilization, as space technology has become integral to communication, scientific research, and national security. At the same time, the motivations that inform policymaking vary depending on the political priorities of the governments across these regions. Building on the divergent experiences of two middle powers classified in the upper-middle income group -Turkey and Malaysia- this paper problematizes how the political landscape influences the priorities assigned to space programs in countries that are integrated into critical markets controlled by a global hegemon on unequal terms. In these contexts, the official policy to expand the informational capacity of the state beyond the national borders was shaped by two distinct dynamics. In Turkey, frequent economic crises and security concerns have influenced the direction of the country's space program with a greater focus on military applications rather than neo-developmental goals. By contrast, in Malaysia, the establishment of the Malaysian Space Agency (MYSA) in 2002 emerged out of a concern for utilizing space technology for socio-economic development around Malaysian industrial policy that prioritized high-value-added exports for growth.
The genocide that changed the world
(Taylor & Francis, 2025) Shaw, Martin
The question of genocide will never be the same following the Israeli genocide of the Palestinians in Gaza, which is still ongoing after almost two years at the time of writing. This has had a global impact which far exceeds that of other recent cases, and represents a major change in the role of the phenomenon in the international system, with equally transformative significance for its academic study. This article examines the distinctive features of the Gaza case, its consequences and the issues of conceptualization that it poses. It contends that with Gaza, genocide has moved from the margins to the centre of world politics, so that the assumptions about how it can be prevented which prevailed in the previous period are no longer relevant. It also argues that the present conceptual state of the academic genocide studies field is no longer sustainable, and that scholars must revisit its foundations in order to adequately understand the new challenges. In particular, Gaza shows how, even when war and genocide are largely fused, distinct concepts of each are essential for understanding.
Foreign legionnaires and military mutinies
(Oxford University Press, 2025) Escribà-Folch, Abel; Faulkner, Christopher; Mehrl, Marius
The composition of the armed forces is, by now, well established as a major factor determining the risk of coups d’état. However, military discontent not only manifests in the form of coups but also as mutinies. This latter form of troop rebellion has received little empirical attention. We examine how the practice of recruiting foreigners into the armed forces affects the likelihood of such events and develop two arguments regarding a direct and a moderating effect of legionnaires on mutiny risk. First, we contend that the recruitment of legionnaires is likely to cause material-based grievances, hence be perceived as detrimental to the corporate interests, wages, and promotion prospects of the rank-and-file, and thus troops will oppose the introduction of such recruitment policies. We hence expect the onset of legionnaire recruitment policies to be associated with an increased risk of mutinies. However, once such policies are in place, the presence of legionnaires can mitigate the effects of other mutiny drivers as foreign recruits impede local soldiers’ task-related grievances and thus incentives to mutiny in reaction to them. Using global data over the period 1948–2015, we find empirical support for the expectations derived from both arguments.
Turning vulnerability into strength: how independent regulatory agencies enhance accountability and build stakeholder trust
(Wiley, 2025) Jordana, Jacint; Triviño Salazar, Juan Carlos
Trustable environments are highly appreciated for regulatory performance, but difficult to emerge. A condition for making trust work is to accept vulnerability, and this holds both for stakeholders and agencies in public governance. Trust-related vulnerability can be understood as a dynamic perception of potential harm derived from entering into a desired interaction. While stakeholders increased vulnerability due to voluntary exchanges with public bodies has been widely documented, the conditions under which agencies voluntarily increase their vulnerability remain less explored. Focusing on independent regulatory agencies (IRAs), this paper introduces a conceptual framework where agency vulnerability serves as a strategic tool to enhance IRAs' accountability, ultimately supporting these goals. We argue that IRAs intentionally incorporate vulnerability to make accountability efforts more credible, fostering stakeholder trust and facilitating operations. To achieve this, IRAs disclose sensitive information through accountability mechanisms, including transparency and participation initiatives. While this exposes them to criticism, penalization, or termination, it also strengthens stakeholder support and regulatory effectiveness. However, to manage risks, vulnerability is often selectively applied, prioritizing preferred stakeholders. We empirically apply this framework on Spanish data protection, finance, and food safety regulators. Our findings suggest that while vulnerability increases risks by enabling potential harm to IRAs, it ultimately mitigates accountability challenges and enhances trust among selected stakeholders, making accountability relationships more credible.
Nation‐building in the wake of empire: identifying patterns of minority policies in the aftermath of soviet collapse
(Wiley, 2025) Amasyalı, Emre; Tarasov, Andrei
The collapse of the USSR forced newly independent states to forge national identities while grappling with imperial legacies. This study investigates nation-building strategies in post-Soviet states during 1990–1999, using the Nation-Building Policies (NBP) dataset from the ETHNICGOODS project, which includes all socially and politically relevant minority groups. Employing cluster analysis, it identifies three typologies of nation-building policies: low, moderate and high inclusion. These typologies reveal varying levels of minority inclusion in language education, citizenship policies and constitutional measures. By examining short-term variations and using the year 2020 as a reference point, this study challenges the simplified view of post-Soviet nation-building as uniformly ‘nationalising’ and highlights significant regional and group-specific differences. Policy shifts reflect dynamic state-minority interactions influenced by geographic, cultural and political factors. The findings enhance understanding of diverse nation-building approaches and provide broader insights into contemporary minority relations in Eastern Europe, Central Asia and the Caucasus, contributing to comparative studies of nation- and state-building.
Authoritarian neoliberalism and the instrumentalization of the banking sector in Turkey and Hungary
(SAGE Publications, 2025) Apaydin, Fulya; Piroska, Dora; Coban, Mehmet Kerem
This paper studies the evolution of the domestic banking sector in Hungary and Turkey where Viktor Orban and Recep Tayyip Erdogan have intervened to politically control credit allocation. We argue that both leaders have instrumentalized the banking sector to serve their political needs rather than following a developmentalist agenda under authoritarian neoliberalism. This occurred through two distinct patterns following the 2008 Global Financial Crisis in an attempt to ensure their political survival: while Orban intervened in the banking sector to secure partisan access to consumption, Erdogan did so to ensure partisan business access to cheap credit. These policy preferences reveal additional components of an autocrat’s toolkit for political survival, which are strongly influenced by the constellation of dominant social bloc interests and the relative position of their national economies within the overall global financial hierarchy.
Pathways to instability: how decreasing oil prices impact political stability in petrostates – Lessons from the 1980s oil glut
(Elsevier, 2025) Vlaskamp, Martijn
Existing research has shown a correlation between lower oil prices and political instability in oil-rich countries. This paper examines the conditions under which declining oil revenues can contribute to political instability in such countries, with a focus on the impact of the 1980s oil glut on 29 oil-rich countries. Employing Qualitative Comparative Analysis (QCA), the study identifies three distinct pathways to political instability during this period. Each instance of political instability corresponded to a distinct causal configuration bringing together low oil abundance and high oil dependence with one specific political condition: either high clientelism, relatively high public service provision, or significant political freedom. The findings illustrate the complex interplay of factors that influence the relationship between declining oil revenues and political stability. While rooted in a historical context, the results offer insights for the future, as the global transition to renewable energy may similarly affect oil revenues, posing potential risks to political stability in oil-rich countries.
Consumer authorities in Europe: policing markets or empowering consumers?
(Wiley, 2025) Jordana, Jacint; Rozas-Bugueño, Joaquin; Triviño Salazar, Juan Carlos
Consumer protection authorities are vital for domestic markets and the smooth functioning of the EU common market. Established several decades ago, these authorities have different institutional designs in different European countries. This paper aims to identify them and assess their main variations. Based on the literature at the intersection of consumer protection regimes and regulatory governance, we propose a theoretical distinction between enforcement-focused authorities and service delivery-oriented authorities. Specifically, we suggest these principles lead to either a supervisory model, which disciplines market actors, or an empowering model, which gives citizens the keys to prevent market abuses. To empirically test whether these two models capture the variety of institutional designs and practices consumer authorities may adopt, we have identified four different dimensions that characterize their connections to politics, business, and citizens: political autonomy, social accountability, administrative enforcement, and consumer awareness. We begin by discussing which dimensions are associated with which model and then examine the presence of the two models across Europe. Our analysis is based on Bayesian factorial analysis and a Ward.D cluster construction grounded in an original dataset of institutional characteristics from general consumer authorities in 27 EU countries, the UK, and Norway, offering empirical evidence to support our argument. The results suggest that EU efforts to build institutional harmonization have had limited success. Likewise, traditional administrative models across Europe may no longer hold the same relevance as previously indicated in research. Our findings show instead that consumer authorities in Europe can generally be distinguished from each other based on these two principles, though many operate with a hybrid approach.
Inside global governance: perspectives of international organization staff on autonomy and horizontal interactions
(Springer, 2025) Holesch, Adam, 1977-; Jordana, Jacint; Marx, Axel; Schmitt, Lewin
As International Organizations (IOs) have proliferated and expanded their mandates, they have become embedded in increasingly dense and interconnected regime complexes. These evolving governance structures pose new external challenges for IO secretariats, which must navigate relationships with both member states and other IOs within their sector. Yet, comparative evidence on how IO staff perceive these external influences remains scarce. This article addresses this gap in two steps. First, it introduces perceived autonomy as a new empirical variable, drawing on an original multi-IO survey. Second, it examines IO staff perceptions of interactions with other IOs. The results reveal that IO staff perceive moderate autonomy, with variations across four key global governance sectors—trade, finance, security, and climate change—as well as within them. Notably, IO staff do not view interactions with other IOs as particularly problematic, challenging common assumptions in the regime complexity literature about governance congestion. By reintroducing the perspective of IO staff into comparative global governance research, this article offers new insights into how governance complexity is experienced from within.
Foreign aid, FDI and the personalization of power in autocracies
(Cambridge University Press, 2025) Puertas Surrallés, Bernat; Escribà-Folch, Abel
This article examines the relationship between foreign aid and foreign direct investment (FDI) and the degree of personalism in dictatorships. We contend that aid leads to higher personalism since it is a windfall that accrues to the government and does not require cooperation from elites to obtain it. Contrarily, we posit that FDI is linked to lower levels of personalism because it reshapes elites' incentives and influence as they may acquire new preferences, connections, and exit options, thus constraining dictators. Using data on Official Development Assistance (ODA) and FDI, and a latent index of personalism in autocracies, we find no robust evidence that ODA or FDI are correlated with personalism, but have some effect on some of the index's components.
Comparative energy transition policy: how exposure, policy vulnerability and trust affect popular acceptance of policy expansion
(Taylor & Francis, 2024) Schaffer, Lena Maria; Magyar, Zsuzsanna B.
This article examines how exposure to energy transition and climate policy vulnerability influence popular support for more ambitious climate policy. Moreover, it explores whether this relationship depends on a person's generalized and political trust. Comparing data from surveys in Germany and Switzerland, the findings reveal that perceived exposure to energy transition positively influences climate policy support, while individual climate policy vulnerability decreases it. For individuals with higher levels of trust, exposure helps enhance the positive effect (subjective exposure) or dampen the negative effect (policy vulnerability). These results underscore the importance of incorporating trust and subjective perceptions into climate policy frameworks.
Perceptions of peace in times of war: public opinion evidence from Ukraine
(Brill Academic Publishers, 2025) Daniels, Lesley-Ann; Polegkyi, Oleksii
Peace settlements are often an elite pact, especially in interstate conflicts, yet public support is important for the stability of peace. However, we know little about what peace means to individuals during times of war. Using the salient case of Ukraine, this article explores how citizens define peace using an original survey of 2,100 respondents, fielded in the government-controlled parts of Ukraine in August 2023, during the war. The findings show that at the baseline many people think of peace in positive and personal terms, distinct from the hegemonic view of peace through victory. Drawing on social identity theory, an experimental test shows that priming for both the in-group and the out-group moves people to peace linked to and secured by a military victory. A key driver is the threat from the enemy out-group. The findings show the importance of framing for public perceptions of peace.
One name for two concepts: a systematic literature review about meta-organizations
(Wiley, 2025) Coulombel, Philippe; Berkowitz, Héloïse
Existing literature on meta-organization is divided into two distinct streams in organizational and management studies, with different definitions and boundaries, potentially leading to inconsistencies and theoretical misalignment. Can we disambiguate the conceptualizations of meta-organizations, and what insights can be gleaned from this clarification? Using a systematic review of the meta-organization literature, we propose a novel classification, distinguishing between meta-organizations as ‘meta-level actors’, rooted in the organizational perspective, and meta-organizations as ‘orchestrated systems’, grounded in the management perspective. While synthesizing current knowledge about meta-organizations, we highlight the commonalities, divergences and specificities of both perspectives. We contribute to the literature on meta-organizations by bringing greater clarity to the field, by disambiguating the uses of meta-organization, by outlining a state of the art for both new categories and by providing a detailed research agenda. We also provide fundamental insights about two distinct ways of meta-organizing, that is creating order among and beyond single organizations through collectively decided social orders and orchestrated social orders.
European radical left foreign policy after the invasion of Ukraine: shifts in assertiveness towards Russia
(Taylor & Francis, 2024) Holesch, Adam, 1977-; Zagórski, Priotr; Ramiro, Luis
The 2022 Russian invasion of Ukraine has prompted a closer examination of parties’ attitudes towards the Putin regime. While research has examined the connections of the EU's far-right with Russia, less attention has been given to the stances of Radical Left Parties (RLPs). We close this gap by analysing Roll Call Votes (RCVs) in the European Parliament. Our findings indicate that RLPs displayed the lowest levels of assertiveness towards Russia before 2022, being even less assertive than other Eurosceptic groups. RLPs significantly increased their assertiveness after the invasion, bringing them closer to the EP mainstream. However, some divergence in assertiveness towards Russia existed within the RLPs before 2022 and remains relevant after the invasion, with the Traditional/Communist parties standing closer to Russia than radical New Left/Democratic Socialist parties.
Territorial disputes and affective polarization
(Wiley, 2024) Balcells, Laia; Daniels, Lesley-Ann; Kuo, Alexander
Can territorial disputes within countries be a basis for affective polarization? If so, how does it vary across territories? A burgeoning literature on affective polarization has largely focused on partisan divisions; we argue that contentious political issues such as those relating to territorial integrity can also be a basis for such affective polarization, where citizens feel concord with those sharing such policy preferences and animus for those who do not. We specify hypotheses about territorial-policy-based affective polarization and bring comparative survey evidence from three European regions with salient and contentious territorial claims: Scotland, Catalonia and Northern Ireland. While these three cases encompass different outcomes of territorial disputes, our results show strikingly similar levels of affective polarization.

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Enviaments recents