Dissertations / Theses on the topic 'Comparative government – Europe'

In the field of European studies, the notion of ‘differentiated integration’ (Stubb 1996) was developed in the late 1990s as an alternative to the crude membership/non-membership dichotomy. While the theoretical benefits of this approach are broadly discussed in the existing literature, further empirical studies have been deemed necessary (Holzinger and Schimmelfennig 2012). The Nordic states constitute a particularly interesting laboratory in order to study this phenomenon. Indeed, while these states share several socio-economic and political characteristics, they also differ in terms of their relationship with the European Union. Several studies on these relationships emphasise the relevance of certain contextual variables as key explanatory factors for the variation in attitudes between the Nordic states. However, there is also lack of analysis that looks into the domestic political features that these countries share. Furthermore, most studies in the field tend to ignore the respective government’s positions on European integration, and mostly adopt a top-down approach when focusing on the nation-state as a whole. Adopting a most similar systems design, this thesis aims to answer the following question: have Nordic government preferences on European integration been influenced by domestic political factors? In order to answer this question, four domestic variables are introduced and analysed: relative strength of parties in parliament; composition of government; type of government; and government ideology. Within this comparative framework, three Nordic countries have been selected: the first one belonging to the ‘inner core’ of the European Union (Finland);; while the second is located at its ‘outer core’ (Sweden);; and the third one serves as a control case as an ‘EU-outsider’ which is still located in the Union’s ‘inner periphery’ (Norway). For each state, the analysis starts in the early 1990s, when ‘Europe’ developed into a politically salient issue in domestic politics. The focus is furthermore set on their respective government’s positions regarding five distinct policy areas: participation in the European Economic Area; application for European Union membership; participation in the Schengen Area; participation in the Economic and Monetary Union; and participation in European Battle Groups. The main findings of the thesis suggest that when analysing governments’ positions on (differentiated) European integration, the domestic political features should not be downplayed. For instance, the Swedish government’s opposition to participation in the EMU in 1997 is mostly explained by a lack of party consensus over this issue, unlike in Finland where a broad inter-party agreement was secured for this policy area. The analysis further suggests that studies on party and government preferences on Europe should focus on policy areas rather than on the issue of integration as a whole. Such a focus provides for better understanding of the nature of ‘Euroscepticism’ in the Nordic region and, to a broader extent, in Europe.

This thesis answers the question how and why do individuals specialise in different types of political participation? By examining the degree to which individuals concentrate their political activities within one type of political participation, or spread them out across many. This thesis complements previous research on rates of political participation; and adapts and extends existing theories of political participation to explain differences in the degree of specialisation between different groups in society and between countries. Using data from the European Social Survey, covering as many as 21 European countries, and applying a range of different statistical methods, I distinguish four types of political participation: voting, conventional and unconventional political participation and consumer politics. I show that in countries with higher levels of socio-economic development, more democratic experience, and an increased presence of mobilising agents, the degree to which individuals concentrate their political activities within one type of political participation is higher, regardless of the accessibility and responsiveness of their political institutions. This is partly due to the fact that these countries have a higher educated population and that higher educated individuals specialise more. Specialisation also varies along the lines of other socio-demographic divisions, such as those based on gender. Moreover, I show that in contexts in which political issues are salient, such as during an election year, individuals are more likely to engage in non-electoral types of political participation if they also vote. This implies that specialisation is reduced during times of country-wide political mobilisation. The final finding of my thesis is that non-Western immigrants tend to concentrate their political activities less within one type of political participation than the majority population in Western Europe. Western immigrants specialise quite differently, suggesting differences in the way in which they are mobilised. As well as providing an important contribution to the study of political participation, these findings are relevant to discussions regarding citizen engagement and representation.

Part of a new cohort of diplomatic actors, sub-state governments represent a particularly complex challenge for our understanding of international relations. These actors are both territorially constituted and governmental; they look and sound very similar to states. Crucially, however, they are not states at all. When paradiplomatic relations are conducted on the part of sub-state governments with a strong regional identity, in particular ‘stateless nations’, there can sometimes be challenge – implicit or explicit – to the authority of the state to speak for, or represent, its people. This thesis takes three such stateless nations: Wales, Scotland and Bavaria, and analyses their paradiplomatic activities. The unique political context in each of these case studies is used as a frame within which to understand and interpret both the motivations and implications of such activities. Using a conceptual toolkit less familiar to traditional paradiplomatic analysis, including sovereignty games, performativity and mimicry, the study explores the ways in which sub-state governments acquire international agency, and the extent to which this agency is contested by other actors. Despite the range in political ambitions in each of the stateless nations considered, the paradiplomatic activities they conducted were often remarkably similar. What differed, however, was the way that these activities were interpreted, depending on the political context and the tenor of inter-governmental relations within the state. The paradox of paradiplomacy is that in many ways it remains unremarkable in its day-to-day practices. Yet, at other times, sub-state governments use their international relationships to make important claims about their status and position within their state, the currency of exchanges becoming that rarefied concept: sovereignty. Using a marginal site of international relations such as paradiplomacy, this thesis explores the heterogeneity of the field and the variety of relationships that exist and persist within it.

Party membership levels in the new democracies of central and east European were predicted to remain universally low, stymied by post-communist legacies, the availability of state funding and the prevalence of mass media communications (van Biezen, 2003; Kopecký, 2007). However, more than two decades after the fall of the Berlin Wall, membership levels vary considerably between countries, and also between individual parties within party systems. Using freshly gathered party membership data, elite surveys and interviews, this thesis explores a number of institutional hypotheses to test whether, as in western democracies, electoral institutions influence how parties organise and campaign. This thesis finds that national electoral systems, municipal electoral rules and business funding regulations have an observable impact on how parties use their members. In particular, 'decentralised' electoral systems encourage greater involvement of members in voter contacting and other small campaign tasks. This thesis concludes that, contrary to the dominant literature, the availability of state funding has little impact on party membership recruitment. Instead, central and east European parties' attitudes to members are shaped by a complex interaction of institutional, cultural, ideological and strategic factors.

This thesis is rooted in the research tradition known as coalition politics, where governments, political parties and political institutions are the central focus. The main emphasis here is on government instability and the question of why governments in modern parliamentary democracies often come to an end before the next regular election. In five distinct but interrelated papers, the thesis explores the issue of early government termination and how it is affected by public support, economic developments and the functioning of the state apparatus. The studies included in this thesis generally take a quantitative approach and make use of a dataset that contains 640 governments in 29 European democracies. Their joint goal is to improve our understanding of when early termination happens by introducing and testing new explanatory factors as well as by improving how previously identified factors are modelled. The first paper focuses on Central and Eastern Europe. It shows that the stability of governments in that region is affected by slightly different factors than those that impact on governments in Western Europe. In particular, ideological factors and political institutions are found to be less important in Central and Eastern Europe while the formal power basis of the government and the country’s economic performance matter more. In the second paper, co-authored with Professor Torbjörn Bergman, the state is brought into government stability research. The paper shows that countries with a lower quality of governance and a less efficient public sector have less stable governments. This is mainly because government parties struggle to achieve their policy goals when the state apparatus is inefficient and corrupt. Paper 3, co-written with Associate Professor Johan Hellström, looks at how different types of governments respond to economic challenges. In particular, this paper demonstrates that the same changes in economic circumstances (e.g. increases in unemployment or inflation) have different effects on cabinet stability depending on which type of government is in charge. Single party governments are better equipped to deal with economic changes, because they are better positioned to devise new policy responses without having to compromise with other parties. Coalition governments, in contrast, become significantly more likely to terminate early when the economy takes a turn for the worse. Finally, over the course of two papers I first explore new techniques for analysing polling data and then use them to empirically test whether governments sometimes choose termination as a way to cope with bad poll numbers. Most of the existing techniques for pooling polls and forecasting elections were explicitly designed with two party systems in mind. In Paper 4, I test some of these techniques to determine their usefulness in complex, multiparty systems, and I develop some improvements that enable us to take advantage of more of the information in the data. In the final paper, I combine the two themes of polling and government stability by looking at how changes in government popularity affect the likelihood of premature dissolution. I find that governments, particularly single party governments, do, in fact, use terminations as a strategic response to changes in their popularity among the public. When support is high, governments tend to opportunistically call an early election, whereas they tend to abandon or reshuffle the government when support is low.

Eco-labelling schemes can be classified according to the ownership of the programme. This thesis compares government-controlled, private and half government-controlled, half privatised eco-labelling schemes from Europe, America, Germany and Canada. The criteria for the comparison are divided in three sections. The first section is based on the awarding process, focusing on the determination of product categories, the setting of standards and the awarding of the label. The second section focuses on environmental policy and regulation, examining impact on trade, transparency of the programme, accountability and credibility and whether the programme is a stand-alone instrument. Section three contains the context and background of the study, discussing the programme's effectiveness in providing information, knowledge about the label and the effect of the label on manufacturers. These criteria are applied to each of the four eco-labelling programmes. Three areas were found to be most problematic during this comparison. The first one was found concerning the possible incompatibility of eco-labelling programmes with GATT law and therefore their negative impact on international trade. The second one was found regarding the accountability of the programmes, showing the difficulty in holding the eco-labelling authority accountable. The third problem was the amounts of funding necessary to advertise the programmes so that consumers will become fully aware of them - funding that is not available. After the actual comparison, the results were then drawn together in a final analysis. During this analysis, a look was also taken at eco-labelling in general. Several intrinsic problems were determined, such as the still unreliable scientific method of life-cycle analysis (LCA), the "lock in" to inferior technologies and the unwillingness of consumers to pay higher prices for environmentally friendly products. Since the result of the comparison is that eco-labelling contains too many intrisinc problems to be able to ever function as it should be, a look was taken at possible alternatives, such as international harmonisation of standards, the ISO 14000 series, the Eco-Profile, mutual recognition under the Global Eco-labelling Network and mandatory product standards.

This thesis examines the conditions under which democratically elected policymakers are more likely to provide policies that compensate individuals that lose from international trade. It develops and empirically tests a theoretical framework of compensation in open economies that accounts for differences in the degree to which governments benefit losers from trade. It first develops a theory of preference formation based on economic geography, and then argues that electoral and legislative institutions jointly condition the supply of compensation. The theoretical analysis provides three sets of observable implications evaluated using micro- and macro-level data in Europe and Latin America. First, exposure to international competition increases demand for policy that compensates for the costs of trade, but this effect is more pronounced among those individuals in economically specialised and uncompetitive contexts where reemployment in the event of a shock is difficult. Second, policymakers in proportional electoral systems face weak incentives to target trade losers in geographically concentrated and uncompetitive regions. In contrast, majoritarian institutions generate incentives to increase compensation when trade losers are geographically concentrated. Another implication is that under some conditions, the presence of a strong upper house that represents regional interests dampens the provision of compensation, and the relative effect of electoral rules. The empirical implications of the argument are tested using a multi-method research strategy that combines cross-national and case study analyses and draws on quantitative and qualitative techniques. Chapter 3 tests the micro-level implications of the model using survey data for European regions over 2002-2006. The findings indicate that regional economic specialization and regional competitiveness jointly condition the impact of trade on preferences for compensation. Chapter 4 systematically tests the extent to which the geographical concentration of trade losers conditions the effect of electoral institutions on levels of compensation. It uses panel data from 14 European countries from 1980 to 2010. The findings indicate that where trade losers are concentrated, lower district magnitude leads to more compensation. Chapters 5 and 6 conduct case studies of compensation in Spain and Argentina, both countries that underwent deep liberalisation and offer significant variation at the regional and institutional level. Chapter 5 explores preferences over compensation in selected regions in Spain and Argentina, and shows that regional specialisation and competitiveness were important in shaping levels of support for compensation. Chapter 6 examines the role of electoral institutions and legislative veto bargaining in shaping the politics of compensation in Spain and Argentina.

This study applies Destler's institutional counterweights to Putnam's two-level analysis, substituting Liberal Institutionalism and Realism for internationalism and isolationism, in a comparative case study of the roles played by the U.S. and the EC in multilateral trade negotiations in agriculture under the aegis of the General Agreement for Tariffs and Trade during the first half of the Uruguay Round. Using game theory as an analytical tool in the process, this present study demonstrates that a clear pattern emerges in which stages of cooperation and deadlock can be easily anticipated in games of Chicken and Prisoners' Dilemma in accordance with various but predictable levels of institutional influence.

This thesis analyses the current regulatory regimes in the European Union---in particular Germany---and the United States governing the authorization of global mobile personal communications by satellite (GMPCS).
Current satellite licensing regimes fail to take into account the international character of satellite telecommunications. The reliance on a national public interest standard does not properly address the interests of the community of states, industry and consumers and is not suitable to meet the aspirations of international space law. The international harmonization of frequencies and international standardization are indispensable for the introduction of these new services. The establishment of an international communications regulator with the power to adopt binding decisions if required is the most suitable way to address these problems. However, the development of an international public interest standard with clear policy objectives will be hard to achieve.
With regard to the different aspects of ground segment licensing, a gradual approach is the best way to balance the different interests and concerns in this field. The International Telecommunications Union GMPCS MoU and the development of European regulations show a feasible way to achieve a regulatory regime that facilitates the introduction of these new services. Lighter regulations, possibly the introduction of one stop shopping procedures, mutual recognition of licenses and the introduction of general authorizations are measures that can and should be taken at the international level. The interdependence of earth and space segment licensing may lead to the understanding that some aspects of earth segment licensing should also be regulated at international level.
The question will be whether States, industry and users are able to reconcile their interests and the sometimes opposing trends of international cooperation and international competition for the benefit of "all mankind".

The Islamic minority in France today is experiencing adversity as the government of France passed legislation stating that all facial coverings will be henceforth illegal, restricting or prohibiting religious symbols in various public spaces. Some Islamic women feel as though this is a pointed attack on women of the Muslim faith for their choice to wear traditional clothing which covers the face and body. There have been outcries that this is a human rights violation and restriction of religious rights. This project is an examination of the effects of France’s “burqa ban” and restrictions on religious symbols on both Islamic men and women who live in France. The goal of this project is to speak directly to those affected by this legislation and to understand the perspective and opinions of French Muslims. Records such as documented personal testimonies, legal archives, and transcriptions of in-person interviews are utilized to study the perspective of this minority in response to the controversial legislation. Neglecting to pursue an understanding of another culture and belief system will only yield disharmony among groups, and this research aims to avoid this phenomenon. In collecting the data, I set a goal to have and later discuss a better understanding of this issue and the people affected by it.

Mediante la elaboración de una metodología operativa apropiada, la labor de investigación que aquí se presenta tiene por objeto cuestionar el papel de los think tanks en las sociedades contemporáneas mediante un marco general que combina principalmente enfoques epistemológico crítico, sociohistórico y empírico. Sin embargo, lo que constituye un fenómeno mundial, permaneció a las puertas del debate público en la mayoría de los países hasta principios de la década de 2000. Desde entonces, los think tanks se han convertido en actores centrales y familiares de la vida política. El innegable foco de atención del que son objeto ha ido acompañado también de una creciente institucionalización de su participación en los procesos de política pública y en el debate público, tanto a nivel nacional como europeo. Sin embargo, la sobreexposición mediática resultante ha contribuido en gran medida a desdibujar la comprensión que se puede tener de su naturaleza, funcionamiento y objetivos. Esto no está exento de problemas para la calidad del debate democrático, especialmente en el actual período de crisis de legitimidad política tanto a nivel nacional como europeo. Así, el análisis comparativo del papel de los think tanks franceses y españoles especializados en Asuntos europeos en el marco de la política de integración parece particularmente fructífero desde una perspectiva heurística. Una reflexión epistemológica sobre los problemas ligados a la definición del término que, en su forma idiomática o traducida, ha entrado en el lenguaje corriente sin que sus usos se cuestionen, cuestiona en consecuencia la posibilidad de llevar a cabo una investigación pertinente sobre estas organizaciones. Por otra parte, el análisis de las condiciones socio-históricas de su aparición y desarrollo a través del prisma del modelo estadounidense pone de relieve un tropismo neoliberal fuertemente ligado al progreso de la globalización y a la propia integración europea. En este sentido, el análisis del papel de los think tanks seleccionados para esta investigación en la política de integración europea, anclado en el periodo altamente estructurante para la construcción europea 2005-2016, facilita el acceso a sus principales repertorios de actuación, a saber: la producción de conocimientos especializados y la mediación desde su posición en el intersticio entre las esferas nacional y europea, y los campos políticos, económicos, mediáticos y académicos con los que interactúan. Lejos de ser neutrales, se deduce que estos colectivos intelectuales pro-mueven productos cognitivos que alineados con sus propios intereses y valores.
Mitjançant l'elaboració d'una metodologia operativa apropiada, la tasca d'investigació que aquí es presenta té per objecte qüestionar el paper dels think tanks a les societats contemporànies mitjançant un marc general que combina principalment enfocaments epistemològic crític, sociohistòric i empíric. No obstant això, el que constitueix un fenomen mundial, va romandre a les portes de l'debat públic en la majoria dels països fins a principis de la dècada de 2000. Des de llavors, els think tanks s'han convertit en actors centrals i familiars de la vida política. El innegable focus d'atenció de què són objecte ha anat acompanyat també d'una creixent institucionalització de la seva participació en els processos de política pública i en el debat públic, tant a nivell nacional com europeu. No obstant això, la sobreexposició mediàtica resultant ha contribuït en gran mesura a desdibuixar la comprensió que es pot tenir de la seva naturalesa, funcionament i objectius. Això no està exempt de problemes per a la qualitat de l'debat democràtic, especialment en l'actual període de crisi de legitimitat política tant a nivell nacional com europeu. Així, l'anàlisi comparativa de el paper dels think tanks francesos i espanyols especialitzats en Assumptes europeus en el marc de la política d'integració sembla particularment fructífer des d'una perspectiva heurística. Una reflexió epistemològica sobre els problemes lligats a la definició de el terme que, en la seva forma idiomàtica o traduïda, ha entrat en el llenguatge corrent sense que els seus usos es qüestionin, qüestiona en conseqüència la possibilitat de dur a terme una investigació pertinent sobre aquestes organitzacions. D'altra banda, l'anàlisi de les condicions sociohistòriques de la seva aparició i desenvolupament a través de l'prisma de el model americà posa en relleu un tropisme neoliberal fortament lligat a el progrés de la globalització i de la pròpia integració europea. En aquest sentit, l'anàlisi de el paper dels think tanks seleccionats per a aquesta investigació en la política d'integració europea, ancorat en el període altament estructurant per a la construcció europea 2005-2016, facilita l'accés als seus principals repertoris d'actuació, que són: la producció de coneixements especialitzats i la mediació des de la seva posició en el interstici entre les esferes nacional i europea, i els camps polítics, econòmics, mediàtics i acadèmics amb què interactuen. Lluny de ser neutrals, es dedueix que aquests col·lectius intel·lectuals pro-mouen productes cognitius que alineats amb els seus propis interessos i valors.
By developing an appropriate operational methodology, the research presented here aims to question the role of think tanks in contemporary societies through a general framework that mainly combines epistemological, socio-historical and critical empirical approaches. However, what constitutes a global phenomenon remained at the gates of public debate in most countries until the early 2000s. Since then, think tanks have become central and familiar actors in political life. The undeniable attention given to them has also been accompanied by a growing institutionalization of their participation in public policy processes and public debate, both at the national and European levels. However, the resulting media overexposure has largely contributed to a blurring of the understanding of their nature, functioning and objectives. This is not without problems for the quality of democratic debate, especially in the current period of crisis of political legitimacy at national and European level. Thus, the comparative analysis of the role of French and Spanish think tanks specialized in European affairs in the framework of integration policy seems particularly fruitful from a heuristic perspective. An epistemological reflection on the problems related to the definition of the term which, in its idiomatic or translated form, has entered everyday language without its uses being questioned, consequently questions the possibility of conducting relevant research on these organizations. On the other hand, the analysis of the socio-historical conditions of their emergence and development through the prism of the American model highlights a neoliberal tropism strongly linked to the progress of globalization and European integration itself. In this sense, the analysis of the role of the think tanks selected for this research in European integration policy, anchored in the highly structuring period of European construction 2005-2016, facilitates access to their main repertoires of action, namely: the production of specialized knowledge and mediation from their position in the interstice between the national and European spheres, and the political, economic, media and academic fields with which they interact. Far from being neutral, it follows that these intellectual collectives promote cognitive products that are in line with their own interests and values.

On the basis of case studies of 19th and early 20th century Germany, Sweden and the Netherlands, I address the question of how and when incumbent right elites reformed electoral systems under a rising political threat from the left. Some states adopted proportional representation (PR) earlier than others. Why did different states adopt PR at different times? One important factor was the existing electoral system before the adoption of PR. This has been missed in academic research since most scholars have assumed that the electoral system in place before the adoption of PR in most Western European states was single-member plurality (SMP). I show that the system in place prior to PR in most Western European states was not SMP but a two-round system (TRS). TRS effects are still poorly understood by political scientists. I argue that both PR and TRS were used as safeguards by the parties on the right against an electoral threat from the left, which originated from the expansion of suffrage. PR was used as a last resort after other safeguards had been exhausted. I state that in the presence of a strong left threat, countries with TRS could wait longer to implement PR than countries with SMP in place. Under TRS, the adoption of PR was considerably delayed since electoral coordination between parties could be applied more effectively than under SMP systems. This was largely due to the increase of information and time after the first round of TRS elections, which was used by right parties to coordinate votes around the most promising candidate before the second round. First round results under TRS were used as an "electoral opinion poll". Based on these results, the right could react more effectively than the left in order to improve outcomes in round two.

La presente tesi si concentra sui processi di decentramento in Italia e Spagna, analizzando l'impatto dei mutamenti del quadro giuridico europeo sull'autonomia finanziaria regionale. L’ordinamento finanziario sovranazionale è stato infatti ampiamente modificato negli ultimi anni (specialmente con riferimento alla c.d. "Eurozona") per affrontare le pressanti sfide di natura macroeconomica derivanti dalla crisi del debito sovrano, che ha coinvolto svariati Stati Membri. L'analisi del tema proposto viene effettuata con il metodo della comparazione, prendendo in considerazione gli ordinamenti italiano e spagnolo. Tale scelta metodologica riposa essenzialmente su due elementi, che integrano il requisito della comparabilità tra i due ordinamenti: a) la vicinanza strutturale e l'influenza reciproca che storicamente si è verificata tra i due modelli di decentramento (che vengono usualmente riportati alla forma – o tipo – di Stato regionale); b) la comune soggezione ai vincoli finanziari derivanti dall’ordinamento europeo, unita a una condizione di grave difficoltà finanziaria che coinvolge il sistema regionale in generale, e – in maniera più acuta – le Regioni e Comunidades Autónomas (d’ora in poi, CC.AA.) che sono state (o sono) colpite da fenomeni di mala gestio. Si presenterà ora brevemente la struttura del lavoro. I primi due capitoli parlano dello Stato regionale in Italia e in Spagna, ossia il contesto, lo “sfondo”, nel quale si inserisce il tema dell’autonomia finanziaria, seguendo la contrapposizione astratto/concreto, statico/dinamico: da un lato i modelli elaborati dalla dottrina, dall'altro l’evoluzione storica delle esperienze regionali, in entrambi i casi con particolare riferimento ai profili finanziari. Il primo capitolo descrive dunque la modellistica che viene generalmente utilizzata rispetto alle forme di distribuzione territoriale del potere politico (unione di stati, confederazione, stato federale, stato regionale, stato unitario), con un particolare approfondimento per la problematica categoria dello Stato regionale e, rispetto ad esso, registrando sia le posizioni critiche sull’utilità della categoria sia la particolare rilevanza che il livello di autonomia finanziaria regionale può avere a fini classificatori. Il secondo capitolo tratta invece partitamente le due linee storiche che si incrociano nella tematica in esame. Da un lato, lo sviluppo del regionalismo in Spagna e in Italia e le varie fasi dell’autonomia finanziaria nei due ordinamenti: non sfugge infatti a chi scrive che l’attuale stato delle finanze pubbliche territoriali sia in entrambi i casi il frutto di un complesso processo di evoluzione; tuttavia – ai fini della comparazione – pare opportuno privilegiare l’aspetto sincronico a quello diacronico, concentrandosi sull'ultimo stadio di questo percorso, nel suo intreccio con un sistema normativo e decisionale sempre più complesso, nazionale e sovranazionale. Dall'altro lato, si fa appunto un quadro dell’evoluzione della governance finanziaria europea sotto l’impatto della crisi economico-finanziaria che si è originata a livello globale a partire dal 2008. Tale evoluzione costituisce infatti il presupposto dei mutamenti costituzionali e normativi che si vogliono analizzare nel presente lavoro. Il terzo capitolo, che è il più ampio del lavoro, descrive l’ordinamento finanziario di Regioni e CCAA nel quadro di un sistema normativo che ormai affonda le sue radici nel livello sovranazionale. Obiettivo di questa parte del lavoro è tanto dare conto del sistema delle fonti dell’autonomia finanziaria da un punto di vista formale, quanto esporre ed analizzare le scelte normative compiute in concreto. Al suo interno, il capitolo è tripartito: ordinamento UE, ordinamento italiano e ordinamento spagnolo. La ragione di una trattazione separata dei due Paesi sul piano delle fonti è evidente: si tratta di sistemi peculiari e non sovrapponibili. In Spagna il metodo di finanziamento delle CCAA è determinato da due importanti leggi organiche, la LOFCA (Ley Orgánica de Financiación de las Comunidades Autónomas) e la LOEPSF (Ley Orgánica de Estabilidad Presupuestaria y Sostenibilidad Financiera): diventa dunque essenziale approfondire natura e ambito di competenza di ciascuna di esse, assieme al discusso problema del rapporto tra leggi organiche e Statuti delle CCAA nel sistema delle fonti del diritto. In Italia il quadro delle fonti si è fatto nel tempo sempre più articolato: basti ricordare la previsione di una specifica legge rinforzata da parte della nuova formulazione dell’art. 81, c.6, Cost. e il ruolo della legge delega sul federalismo fiscale (l. n. 42 del 2009) nel condizionare il contenuto dei relativi decreti legislativi di attuazione. All'interno dei paragrafi relativi all'uno e all'altro Paese si cerca di porre in luce i due versanti dell’autonomia finanziaria già esplicitati in precedenza, entrata e spesa. Rispetto al'’autonomia di entrata, si dà conto tanto dello spazio concesso alla potestà impositiva di Regioni e CCAA – e quindi il potere di istituire tributi propri regionali e i ccdd. tributos cedidos anche dal punto di vista normativo nel caso spagnolo – quanto del problema centrale del finanziamento delle autonomie territoriali mediante risorse derivanti dai tributi statali, nelle forme della compartecipazione al gettito degli stessi e dei trasferimenti statali. Il profilo dell’autonomia di spesa riceve poi una considerazione altrettanto approfondita. In sistemi regionali in cui la decisione sulle entrate è ancora sostanzialmente in mano al livello di governo centrale, è chiaramente l’autonomia di spesa a concretare più direttamente l’autonomia finanziaria regionale, fino a spingere taluno a coniare la categoria del federalismo fiscale “di spesa”. Proprio sull'autonomia di spesa hanno però impattato in maniera più diretta la crisi economico- finanziaria, i vincoli finanziari europei e la loro attuazione a livello interno: quest’ultima è avvenuta non soltanto tramite provvedimenti del legislatore statale volti a porre un limite globale alla spesa delle autonomie, al fine di garantire il rispetto dei vincoli sovranazionali da parte del complesso dei soggetti che compongono la c.d. finanza pubblica allargata (limiti diretti all'autonomia di spesa), ma anche tramite norme di legge che incidevano su ambiti rientranti nella competenza delle Regioni, fra i quali gli aspetti ordinamentali, giustificati dallo scopo di contenimento della spesa pubblica (limiti indiretti). Il quarto capitolo approfondisce il tema delle relazioni finanziarie fra Stato e Regioni/CCAA sul piano dei principi costituzionali: a differenza del capitolo precedente, la trattazione viene svolta trasversalmente fra i due ordinamenti, nella convinzione che vi siano alcune linee fondamentali in comune fra di essi. Si delinea quindi un vero e proprio statuto costituzionale dell’autonomia finanziaria nello Stato regionale che si sostanzia nei seguenti principi: autonomia finanziaria e corresponsabilità fiscale; solidarietà; sufficienza finanziaria (connessione risorse-funzioni); coordinamento finanziario; equilibrio di bilancio e sostenibilità finanziaria; leale collaborazione. Per ciascun principio non si dà conto soltanto dei riferimenti normativi ma soprattutto dell’interpretazione che ne è stata data dalla giurisprudenza costituzionale, istanza deputata a far “vivere” i principi nei mutamenti istituzionali e sociali tramite l’interpretazione costituzionale. Il quinto capitolo approfondisce infine un profilo spesso trascurato a livello dottrinale, ossia quello dei sistemi finanziari delle autonomie differenziate, nell’uno e nell’altro ordinamento. Nel caso italiano, il tema è quello della c.d. specialità finanziaria, che configura un percorso originale e peculiare nel quadro del regionalismo italiano. Il tema parrebbe porsi in maniera più complessa nel caso spagnolo, in virtù della potenziale asimmetria che caratterizza il sistema: tuttavia, in virtù della portata omogeneizzatrice della LOFCA, la maggior parte delle comunità autonome presenta un sistema di finanziamento sostanzialmente unitario. La reale differenziazione si coglie piuttosto rispetto al sistema del convenio e concierto autonómico seguito da País Vasco e Navarra, sistema che costituisce il portato di un lungo percorso storico e concreta una delle peculiarità del regimen foral di questi territori. Specialità finanziaria e regime forale presentano tratti di somiglianza e costituiscono esperienze meritevoli di approfondimento: essi sono da un lato oggetto di critica in entrambi i Paesi in quanto considerati “privilegi fiscali”, allo stesso tempo non di rado la estensibilità dei sistemi ad alcune (o a tutte le) Regioni viene fatto oggetto di studio.
Los dos primeros capítulos hablan del Estado regional en Italia y España, es decir el contexto en el que se inserta el tema de la autonomía financiera. El primer capítulo describe las categorías que generalmente se usan con respecto a las formas de distribución territorial del poder político (unión de Estados, confederación, Estado federal, Estado regional, Estado unitario), con un estudio particular de la categoría problemática del Estado regional. El segundo capítulo trata de las dos líneas históricas que se entrecruzan en el tema estudiado. Por un lado, el desarrollo del regionalismo en España e Italia y las diversas fases de autonomía financiera en los dos sistemas; por otro lado, la evolución de la governance financiera europea bajo el impacto de la crisis económico-financiera que se ha originado a nivel mundial desde 2008. Esta evolución es, de hecho, la condición previa de los cambios constitucionales y legislativos que se quieren analizar en el trabajo. Los capítulos tercero y cuarto estudian la autonomía financiera regional según una perspectiva constitucional general: el tercero desde el punto de vista formal, con referencia al sistema de fuentes del derecho, y el cuarto desde el sustantivo, es decir, con respecto a los principios constitucionales. El capítulo tercero trata de la autonomía financiera respectivamente de ingreso y de gasto en el caso italiano y español, considerando los sistemas de fuentes de la Unión Europea e internos de ambos Estados. En relación a la autonomía de ingreso, el trabajo se centra principalmente sobre el problema del poder de las Regiones y CCAA para establecer sus propios impuestos regionales (y sus límites), así como sobre los impuestos cedidos por el Estado a las CCAA en España, por para luego abordar el problema central de financiar autonomías territoriales a través de los recursos derivados de impuestos estatales, en la forma de compartir los ingresos y las transferencias estatales. El perfil de la autonomía del gasto juega también un papel central en el trabajo. Sobre el poder de gasto de las autonomías, han impactado de manera más directa la crisis económica y financiera, las limitaciones financieras europeas y su aplicación a nivel interno. También se considerará el problema de la deuda pública. El capítulo cuarto estudia en particular la jurisprudencia constitucional sobre los siguientes principios: principio de autonomía financiera, principio de suficiencia financiera, principio de coordinación, principio de estabilidad presupuestaria, principio de solidaridad y de ordinalidad, principio de lealtad institucional y de cooperación. Finalmente, el quinto capítulo estudia un perfil a menudo descuidado a nivel doctrinal, que es el de los sistemas financieros de las autonomías diferenciadas, en uno u otro País. En el caso italiano, se trata de la especialidad financiera, que configura un camino original y peculiar en el marco del regionalismo italiano. En el caso español, la diferenciación real se verifica con respecto al sistema de convenio y concierto autonómico de País Vasco y Navarra. Especialidad financiera y régimen Foral tienen rasgos similares y son experiencias interesantes: algunos las critican como "privilegios fiscales", pero otros estudian la extensibilidad de estos sistemas a las demás Regiones/Comunidades.
Els dos primers capítols parlen de l'Estat regional a Itàlia i Espanya, és a dir el context en què s'insereix el tema de l'autonomia financera. El primer capítol descriu les categories que generalment es fan servir pel que fa a les formes de distribució territorial del poder polític (unió d'Estats, confederació, Estat federal, Estat regional, Estat unitari), amb un estudi particular de la categoria problemàtica de l'Estat regional. El segon capítol tracta de les dues línies històriques que s'entrecreuen en el tema estudiat. D'una banda, el desenvolupament del regionalisme a Espanya i Itàlia i les diverses fases de l'autonomia financera en els dos sistemes; d'altra banda, l'evolució de la governance financera europea sota l'impacte de la crisi economicofinancera que s'ha originat a nivell mundial des de 2008. Aquesta evolució és, de fet, la condició prèvia dels canvis constitucionals i legislatius que es volen analitzar en el treball. Els capítols tercer i quart estudien l'autonomia financera regional segons una perspectiva constitucional general: el tercer des del punt de vista formal, amb referència al sistema de fonts del dret, i el quart des del substantiu, és a dir, pel que fa als principis constitucionals . El capítol tercer tracta de l'autonomia financera respectivament d'ingressos i de despesa en el cas italià i espanyol, considerant els sistemes de fonts de la Unió Europea i interns d'ambdós Estats. En relació a l'autonomia d'ingressos, el treball se centra principalment sobre el problema del poder de Regions i CCAA per a establir els seus propis impostos regionals (i el seus límits), així com sobre els impostos cedits per l'Estat a les CCAA a Espanya, per després abordar el problema central de finançar autonomies territorials a través dels recursos derivats d'impostos estatals, en la forma de compartir els ingressos i les transferències estatals. El perfil de l'autonomia de despesa juga també un paper central en el treball. Sobre el poder de despesa de les autonomies, han impactat de manera més directa la crisi econòmica i financera, les limitacions financeres europees i la seva aplicació a nivell intern. També es considerarà el problema del deute públic, al qual s'han posat límits significatius a partir del nou context regulador supranacional. El capítol quart estudia en particular la jurisprudència constitucional sobre els següents principis: principi d'autonomia financera, principi de suficiència financera, principi de coordinació, principi d'estabilitat pressupostària, principi de solidaritat i d'ordinalitat, principi de lleialtat institucional i de cooperació. Finalment, el cinquè capítol estudia un perfil sovint descuidat a nivell doctrinal, que és el dels sistemes financers d'autonomies diferenciades, en un o altre País. En el cas italià, es tracta de l'especialitat financera, que configura un camí original i peculiar en el marc del regionalisme italià. En el cas espanyol, la diferenciació real es verifica que fa al sistema de conveni i concert autonòmic del País Basc i Navarra. Especialitat financera i règim foral tenen trets similars i són experiències interessants: alguns les critiquen com "privilegis fiscals", però altres estudien la extensibilitat d'aquestes sistemes a les demés Regions / Comunitats.
The first two chapters deal about the “regional State” in Italy and Spain. The first chapter describes the categories that are generally used to classify the forms of territorial distribution of political power (union of States, confederation, federal State, regional State, unitary State), with particular attention to the problematic category of the regional State. The second chapter concerns the two historical aspects of the matter. On the one hand, the development of regionalism in Spain and Italy and the various phases of financial autonomy in the two systems; on the other hand, the evolution of European financial governance under the impact of the economic crisis since 2008. This evolution is, in fact, the precondition of the constitutional and legislative changes that the thesis aims to analyse. The third and fourth chapters are devoted to regional financial autonomy according to a general constitutional perspective: the third from the formal point of view, with reference to the system of sources of law, and the fourth from the substantive standpoint (constitutional principles). In particular, the third chapter deals with financial autonomy and, respectively, with tax power and power of expenditure in the Italian and Spanish cases, considering both the European Union and the internal sources of law. In relation to the tax autonomy, the thesis focuses mainly on the problem of the power of Regions and Autonomous Communities to establish their own regional taxes (and their limits), as well as on the taxes assigned by the State to the Autonomous Communities in Spain. Then, the thesis deepens the central problem of financing territorial autonomies through resources derived from State taxes, in the form of revenue sharing and State transfers. The topic of spending power also plays a central role in the research: the European financial rules and their application have a direct impact on regional spending autonomy. The problem of public debt, which is significantly regulated by the new supranational legal context, will also be considered. The fourth chapter is devoted in particular to the constitutional case law on the following principles: the principle of financial autonomy, the principle of financial sufficiency, the principle of coordination, the balance budget principle, the principle of solidarity and its limits, the principle of institutional loyalty and cooperation. Finally, the fifth chapter deals with a matter often neglected at the doctrinal level, which is the financial systems of differentiated autonomies, in both countries. In the Italian case, the Financial Specialty represents an original and peculiar way within the framework of Italian regionalism. In the Spanish case, the most important differentiation is the system of the convenio/concierto autonómico (agreement) of the Basque Country and Navarre.

La rémunération du cocontractant de l'Administration dans les contrats de la commande publique est traditionnellement définie en tant que son droit le plus important. En même temps, elle s'avère un élément essentiel du contrat, une condition de son exécution, ainsi qu'un résultat économique. Or, on se trouve face à un paradoxe : bien que la rémunération soit définie de manière subjective, sa fonction exige une définition objective. La thèse interroge le contenu de ce droit à rémunération. La distinction entre rémunération et contrepartie a conduit à retenir une définition étroite, au sens d'une marge de profit que le cocontractant vise à obtenir en raison de l'exécution du contrat. À ce propos, sont abordées des questions autour de sa détermination lors de la passation et de son évolution lors de l'exécution du contrat de la commande publique. Située au cœur de l'économie du contrat, elle constitue un vecteur du succès du contrat lui-même, dans la mesure où elle assure sa pérennité, outre que l'aspiration prioritaire du cocontractant de l'Administration. La thèse démontre que les intérêts des deux parties aux contrats de la commande publique ne sont pas nécessairement contradictoire. La recherche comparative entre trois États membres de l'Union européenne a permis de mettre en évidence les conceptions communes de la rémunération, dues à une convergence forcée, du fait, notamment, de l'application du droit européen. Cette convergence peut conduire à l'adoption des solutions communes en vue de l'amélioration de l'efficacité des contrats de la commande publique, objectif auquel la thèse pourrait contribuer
The remuneration of the Administration's contractual partner in public procurement contracts is traditionally defined as its most important right. At the same time, it is an essential element of the contract, a condition of its performance, as well as an economic result. However, we are faced with a paradox : although remuneration is defined subjectively, its function requires an objective definition. This thesis questions the content of the above right to remuneration. The distinction between remuneration and counterparty led to a narrow definition, in the sense of a margin profit that the other party seeks to obtain as a result of the performance of the contract. ln this regard, questions are examined around the determination during the award procedure and the evolution of remuneration during the performance of the public procurement contract. Located in the heart of the economy of the contract, remuneration is a vector of the success of the contract itself, insofar as it ensures its durability, apart from the overriding aim of the Administration's contractual partner. This thesis demonstrates that both parties' interests to the contracts of the public commission are not necessarily contradictory. The comparative research between three Member States of the European Union has made it possible to highlight common conceptions of remuneration, due to forced convergence, mainly because of the application of European law. This convergence can lead to the adoption of common solutions with a view to improving the efficiency of public procurement contracts, an objective to which this thesis could contribute

Defence date: 19 May 2017
Examining Board: Prof. Stefano Bartolini, EUI (Supervisor); Prof. Hanspeter Kriesi, EUI; Prof. Ferdinand Müller-Rommel, University of Lüneburg; Prof. Gianfranco Pasquino, University of Bologna
The author was awarded the Linz/Rokkan Prize for the best doctoral thesis in the field of political sociology (June 2019)
In the last thirty years, alternation in government has become a common practice in Western Europe. Unfortunately, democratic theories and theorists have hitherto mostly neglected or taken for granted this crucial phenomenon in many political systems. This thesis aims to fill this gap between theory and practice. In the first part, the dissertation puts forward a new and original conceptual toolkit for the analysis of government alternation across countries and through time. Three dimensions, or faces, of the concept of alternation (i.e. actuality, possibility and probability) are singled out, defined and thoroughly operationalised. This process of concept reconstruction makes it possible to paint a large historical fresco of the development of government alternation in Western Europe throughout the whole post-war period. The second part of the thesis is devoted to the empirical analysis of the suggested determinants of alternation in government. All the factors that may have an impact on the occurrence of alternation in its manifold manifestations are scrutinised and correlated to the diverse ways in which West European party systems change their cabinets across space and time. Furthermore, the analysis carried out in this part of the thesis directly challenges much of the conventional wisdom that has accompanied the study of alternation since its uncertain inception. More precisely, the results of the bivariate analyses show that the occurrence of alternation is not strictly correlated with the fragmentation of the party systems or the proportionality of the electoral systems. Other factors, such as the existence (and the strength) of anti-system parties, the role of pivotal actors, voters’ availability to change their electoral behaviour or the cabinet size, contribute to the explanation of the emergence and the persistence of a pattern of alternation in government. In the last part of the thesis, I carried out a comparative time-series cross-section analysis of the determinants of government alternation in seventeen West European countries. Partially, this set of multivariate analyses confirms some of the evidence collected in the previous section. However, and in addition to that, the large-N statistical analysis demonstrates that different explanatory factors account for the variation in the three dimensions of alternation suggested above. Moreover, the same argument holds true for the explanation of the development of government alternation, in particular its accelerated rise since the 1980s. Finally, in the concluding chapter I analyse, firstly, the foreseeable evolution of government alternation in Western Europe, especially in relation to the impact of the current economic crisis on the functioning of West European democracies. Secondly, the chapter closes with the suggestion of a new typology of party systems based on the existence of a bipolar pattern of inter-party competition and the possibility of a wholesale replacement of the governing parties.

Defence date: 24 March 2014
Examining Board: Professor Adrienne Héritier. Supervisor, European University Institute Professor Stefano Bartolini. Co-supervisor, European University Institute Professor Kris Deschouwer, Vrije Universiteit Brussel Professor Dr. Thomas Poguntke, Heinrich-Heine-Universität Düsseldorf.
First made available online 17 February 2020
Since the mid-1990s, Green parties have participated in 24 governing coalitions in stable democracies, both from within cabinet and as external support parties in parliament. Despite their similarities, these parties' experiences of coalition have been diverse. This thesis seeks to explain variation among these cases in respect of three outcomes: Green parties' attainment of senior ministerial positions at the moment of government formation their retention of cabinet office over time and their electoral outcomes at the end of their spell in coalition. It finds that environmental factors were consistently important for producing these outcomes, but that under many conditions, variation in Green parties' attributes and strategies also played a role. To explain variation in office attainment outcomes, the thesis makes use of an explicitly conjunctural theory that has been developed in the study of support parties. The set of causal factors identified by this theory provides a basis for identifying pathways to high and low office attainment outcomes that are that are empirically consistent and theoretically coherent. In studying office retention outcomes, it develops a framework based on parties' incentives to maximise their electoral and governmental outcomes within a dynamic and institutionally variable setting. It provides a first explanatory account of variation in parties' tenure, identifying a number of pathways to the end of a party's time in office. Finally, the thesis builds on the literature on postincumbency electoral outcomes to identify several paths to post-coalition electoral success and failure. In particular, it suggests that the relatively 'soft' electoral base of Green parties in coalition is an important factor in their losses and that defection from coalition can be electorally beneficial only under restrictive conditions. It identifies a strong tension between office-seeking success and electoral success that presents these parties with especially 'hard choices'.

Defence date: 26 November 2012
Examining Board: Professor Alexander Trechsel, European University Institute (supervisor); Professor Hanspeter Kriesi, European University Institute; Professor José Ramón Montero, Universidad Autonóma de Madrid; Professor Bernhard Wessels, Social Science Research Centre Berlin.
The object of this thesis is Europeans’ orientations to democracy. It is argued in this dissertation that an important variable has been missed in the literature, namely, citizens’ cognitive support for democracy. By including this concept in the analysis of Europeans’ support for democracy, a number of aspects which had been much uncertain until now are inspected. First, conceptual clarification of support for democracy is possible, by distinguishing different types of orientations to democracy. Second, and from an empirical perspective, classical indicators of support for democracy are examined, in order to assess for validity. Interesting results have emerged from the analysis: 1. Determining the structure and the levels of affective support for democracy in Europe. The classic churchillian indicator (‘democracy best’) overstates levels of affective support for democracy in Europe. The structure of affective support for democracy is in fact not homogeneous across Europe, but differs substantially from one group of countries to the others. 2. Mapping types of democrats across Europe. There are different types of democrats across Europe, depending on their cognitive orientations to democracy. These are not evenly spread within each country, but there is correspondence between the structure and levels of affective support and the predominant type of democrats in a country. 3. Studying why people are dis-satisfied with democracy in Europe. The congruence hypothesis (are citizens’ orientations to democracy meaningfully related among them?) is tested. Most citizens are indeed fairly congruent: cognitive and affective supports have an impact on the evaluations of their democratic systems. As such, not only is it possible to determine some of the causes of dis-satisfaction with democracy, but also to claim that the indicator of satisfaction with democracy does reasonably well as a measure of general support for the performance of the regime.

Defense Date: 05/06/2009
Examining Board: Sergio Fabbrini (University of Trento), Jonathan Hopkin (LSE), Michael Keating (EUI) (Supervisor), Peter Mair (EUI)
This thesis undertakes an empirical exploration of multi-level party politics in Italy and Spain since the 1990s, with a particular focus on the regional level of party organisation and electoral competition. It finds that statewide parties have adopted different territorial strategies to confront the common challenge of multi-level coordination in a decentralised political system. Regional branches of statewide parties increasingly respond to the competitive pressures emerging from sub-national party systems, rather than the preferences of the national leadership, although the interests of national and regional elites may often coincide. Regional party systems in both countries are diverging in their structures of competition, not only from the national level but also from each other. This is closely related to the different types of electoral challenge posed by the main non-statewide parties in these regions. The methodological design consists of two national frameworks and four regional case studies, two in Italy (Campania, Lombardia) and two in Spain (Andalusia, Galicia). These are linked through the use of comparable empirical indicators over a similar timeframe. The national frameworks required the compilation of a new data-set on regional elections in Italy and Spain, a detailed analysis of party statutes and their evolution, and a full exploration of the secondary literature in different languages. The regional case studies required extensive archival analysis of the main national newspapers and their regional editions, reinforced by a series of in-depth interviews with political actors in all four regions. The case studies found strong empirical evidence concerning the distinctive character of presidentialism at regional level; the continued importance of clientelism in shaping political relations at subnational levels; the pursuit of autonomist strategies by regional branches of statewide parties; the variety of competitive strategies adopted by non-statewide parties; the role of regional arenas as battlegrounds for national factional disputes; and the importance of local coalition testing for subsequent coalitional choices at regional level. The comparative conclusions serve to consolidate these findings, as well as to reflect on further avenues for research in this rapidly developing field.

Defence date: 21 July 2009
Examining Board: Donatella Della Porta (EUI) (Co-Supervisor); Philippe C. Schmitter (EUI) (Supervisor); Victor Pérez-Diaz (ASP/Univ. Complutense, Madrid) (in absentia); Pedro Tavares de Almeida (Univ. Nova de Lisboa).
PDF of thesis uploaded from the Library digital archive of EUI PhD theses
This dissertation addresses the problem of the sources of associational life and civic engagement. I develop a new theory of the origins of associational life by a comparative historical study of popular sector/lower class associations of urban and rural populations in a set of Western European countries during the period of the 1870s-1970s. The countries under study are Sweden, Norway, Austria (strong civil society); Germany, Netherlands, Belgium (medium to high associatonal life); Britain (medium associational life); Italy, France, Spain and Portugal (weal to very weak associational life). Three political and institutional factors have shaped civil society: 1) Timing of state building and/or international status in the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries. The latter the process of state building and/or the lower international status in the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries, the stronger will be political parties and civil society organizations in the twentieth-century. In states that consolidated fully during the mid and late nineteenth-century and/or had been secondary states in the international system in the eighteenth-century, the pre-modern corporatist structures (e.g. guilds, religious corporate bodies) survived up to the early twentieth-century, because the pressures for resource extraction from state-builders were weaker. This in turn promoted a stronger popular sector organizational life in the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries. 2) State-capacity: the stronger state capacity, the stronger will be voluntary associations. States with high capacity are able to implement policies and establish goals autonomously decided by rulers. In the late nineteenth-century, one of the main functions of the state became the promotion of economic development and nationalist mobilization. For this purpose states have established partnerships with associations. This has empowered associations, through two mechanisms. First, associations have received resources, legitimacy and public status from the State, being thus able to recruit more members through the distribution of selective benefits (welfare, pensions). Second, since high capacity states are more able to impose a uniform jurisdiction and control over a territory, this will make easier for associations to expand through the whole national territory, to connect different geographical areas and more easily develop encompassing peak associations. 3) Democratization: the stronger the degree of democratization of the regime between the 1880s and the 1930s, the stronger associational life. Democratization is measured by two dimensions: 3.1) the extension of rights of participation, debate, and assembly; 3.2) the degree of parliamentarization of the regime. This refers to the control by representative bodies of the formation, decisions, personnel and policies of the executive. The stronger the parliament, the more associational leaders will seek to influence and establish links with MPs and political parties and build their own agenda according to parliamentary cycles. Since strong parliaments represent the whole nation, associations will tend to become national in scope, and as such more coordinated through the territory, with associational leaders creating links and alliances that run through several regions of the country. Moreover, in a strongly parliamentarized system parties will be also more interested in creating permanent and not episodic links with associations in order to have a higher reach to the electorate.

Awarded the 2011 'Research Prize of the German Pension Insurance Agency' (Berlin, 8 December 2011).
Defence date: 11 September 2010
Examining Board: Martin Kohli (EUI) (Supervisor), Fabrizio Bernardi (EUI) (Co-Supervisor), Hans-Peter Blossfeld (Otto Friedrich University, Bamberg), Bernhard Ebbinghaus (University of Mannheim)
PDF of thesis uploaded from the Library digital archive of EUI PhD theses
The goal of this dissertation is to enhance our understanding of the micro and macro level determinants of retirement timing in contemporary Western Europe. This objective is pursued by means of a statistical analysis of large-scale comparable survey data. In short, three points of emphasis characterize this study in comparison with previous research on the topic: 1) the focus on social stratification in terms of gender and class differentials; 2) the central attention paid to social norms of aging; and 3) the joint consideration of individual and country level mechanisms in explaining retirement timing. The review of the previous literature in the second chapter demonstrates that the currently available theoretical approaches by themselves are inappropriate for explaining social variability in retirement timing. Building on the life course paradigm and social class theory, I consequently outline a novel analytical framework for the study of differential retirement behavior. It can be characterized as a choice-within-constraints approach (chapter 3), which essentially focuses on differences between older workers in age norms and late-career opportunity structures, paying special attention on class and gender disparities. In the fourth chapter, I gather empirical evidence on international and individual differences in retirement age norms in Western Europe on the basis of data from the European Social Survey (ESS). Subsequently, I turn to examining actual retirement behavior in the fifth chapter. Using data from the Survey of Health, Ageing and Retirement in Europe (SHARE) a series of event-history models is used to scrutinize the determining factors of retirement timing at the country and individual level variation. In chapters 6 and 7, two case studies on Germany and Spain examine the impact of pension legislation on social stratification in retirement in a detailed manner. The two country studies are based on ad-hoc module on the transition from work into retirement, which has been implemented in the respective national labor force surveys (Encuesta de la Población Activa (EPA) and Mikrozensus) of 2006.

Defence date: 23 March 2007
Examining board: Prof. Martin Rhodes (EUI/Denver University)(Supervisor) ; Prof. Andreas Auer (University of Geneva) ; Prof. David McKay (University of Essex) ; Prof. Alexander Trechsel (EUI)
This dissertation analyses the dynamics of EU policy making through a structured and focused comparison with two other federal polities: the United States and Switzerland. To this end, it draws on the wider comparative federalism literature to examine how basic federal political institutions structure the development of policy outcomes. The empirical focus is on the regulatory challenge posed by the internet's spectacular proliferation during the period of 1995-2005. Two hypotheses are formulated as to how basic federal political institutions shape the development of policy outcomes in the three polities under investigation. First, given the cross-border nature of the policy challenge, we expect to find similar interactions among the different levels of government in all three units of analysis. In particular, federal level political actors should be similarly mobilised into offering centralising solutions to problems with cross-border effects. Furthermore, this could provoke allocational shifts in authority towards the centre in the three units of analysis. Second, it is expected that differences in the policy process and the ‘power capabilities’ of the centre help to explain the variance in policy outcomes. The main findings of the empirical investigation suggest that the dynamics of policymaking in the realm of internet regulation exhibit similarities that make EU comparison with other federal polities across these dimensions especially revealing. This is particularly the case when comparing the EU with polities characterised by an extremely decentralised federal configuration, institutionally weak centres, consensual modes of decision-making, and decentralised modes of policy implementation such as Switzerland.

Defence date: 14 December 2010
Examining Board: László Bruszt (EUI) (Supervisor); Sven Steinmo (EUI); Terry Lynn Karl (Stanford University); Béla Greskovits (Central European University)
PDF of thesis uploaded from the Library digital archive of EUI PhD theses
This thesis explains the divergent outcomes in the evolution of political and economic institutions in two neighboring countries : Belarus and Ukraine between 1991 and 2007. Beyond the principal focus on these two pathways, the thesis also incorporates the examination of a third one, that of Russia, for various empirical, theoretical and methodological reasons. It explores in detail how the disparity in a quality of domestic political competition (largely determined by the strength of nationalist movements, the constellation of elites, and the European leverage and linkage) together with the variables of the external rent flows (timing of the external rent-expansion, costs, ownership and the perceived stability of rents) set the two countries on divergent paths. Going deeper, it analyses the logic behind both reproduction and change of political and economic institutions in Belarus and Ukraine. The focus on the dimension of external rents is the main added value and that what contributes to the uniqueness of this project, for it explains - why, when, how and in conjunction with what other factors, external economic rents steered the pathways away from autocratic socialism.

Defence date: 19 March 2004
Examining board: Prof. Alan Milward, IUE (supervisor) ; Prof. Marc Lazar, Inst. d'Etudes Politiques, Paris ; Prof. Silvio Pons, Università Tor Vergata ; Prof. Arfon Rees, IUE
PDF of thesis uploaded from the Library digitised archive of EUI PhD theses completed between 2013 and 2017

A confiança política é um conceito central na realidade social, política e económica que tem sido alvo de uma abordagem multidisciplinar predominantemente sociológica e política. No entanto, quando aprofundado, emerge como uma realidade multidimensional (Kramer, 1999; McAllister, 1995) que exige o concurso de uma visão psicológica para uma mais cabal compreensão. Com vista a concretizar a inclusão de variáveis psicossociais nos modelos explicativos, o principal objectivo desta dissertação consiste em identificar os preditores da confiança política, procurando clarificar e sistematizar o que leva os cidadãos a confiarem em instituições políticas. Adicionalmente, pretende-se averiguar, através de uma análise comparativa e temporal de países europeus, até que ponto os modelos preditivos são sensíveis a diferentes realidades societais e estáveis no tempo. Para este fim, foi analisada uma amostra de 25533 participantes no European Social Survey (ESS), focando a ronda 1 (2001/2002) e a 4 (2008/2009), analisando um conjunto de seis países: Dinamarca, Grécia, Holanda, Irlanda, Noruega e Portugal. Os resultados evidenciam variações nos níveis da confiança política entre clusters de países sendo necessário concluir pela instabilidade temporal localizada e ancorada nas diferenças entre países, que a confiança política é influenciada pela interacção entre factores sociais e económicos. O declínio transversal nos níveis de confiança política salienta a necessidade de aprofundar o conhecimento que detemos sobre este conceito alargando a visão multidimensional.
Political trust is a central concept, usually studied in a multidisciplinary perspective, with a major influence of political and sociological sciences. However, it‟s equally psychological-defined as in Kramer (1999) or McAllister‟s studies (1995) concerned with the multidimensional approach to this concept. Due to its centrality, this thesis‟ principal goal is identify the political trust‟s antecedents, clarifying which factors are determinant in political trusting citizens. Furthermore, using a comparative and temporal analysis method, we hope to determine political trust‟s behavior according to different moments and cultural, political and economics‟ context. This analysis occurred using the data collected at the European Social Survey‟s first and fourth round (2001 and 2008), comparing Denmark, Greece, Netherland, Ireland, Norway and Portugal. According to the results, political trust varies between country-defined clusters, concluding that this concept is widely influenced by the combined effect of social and economic contexts. The transversal decline which was found reveals the importance attributed to others studies with a multidimensional perspective of political trust.

Defence date: 25 March 2014
Examining Board: Professor Alexander H. Trechsel, European University Institute (Supervisor) Professor Giovanni Sartor, European University Institute, for Prof. Peter Mair (†), EUI Professor David Farrell, University College Dublin Professor Thomas Poguntke, University of Düsseldorf.
European Union institutions have been notoriously criticized for their lack of day-to-day linkage with European citizenry. The European Parliament as the only directly elected EU institution is logically one of the 'closest' linkage institutions to the European electorate. However, little is known about how its representatives - Members' of the European Parliament (MEP) - connect, service and cultivate relations with their constituencies between two elections points. This thesis attempts to fill in this missing link. Using original data from the author's self-administered 2009 MEP survey (N=145), this thesis empirically traces MEP's constituency orientations in three steps. It first maps out MEP constituency orientations in terms of MEP's attitudes / how they think about a their constituencies, the importance they attach to constituency work and the types of activities they pursue in their constituency work. Given that MEP function in an ICT era, in addition to mapping MEP's constituency outreach offline, as part of the second step, the thesis also evaluates how MEP incorporate ICTs and Internet platforms in their constituency outreach. Could it be that the various interactive, transactional and asynchronous features that the Internet provides prompt MEP to use their websites, blogs or social networking sites as quasi virtual constituency offices? In view that a fair degree of variation was found in MEP's constituency outreach, the third last step looks at the determinant of this variation. Overall, the thesis' findings demonstrate that in spite the low institutional and electoral incentives for them to engage in constituency work, MEP conduct a wide range of constituency outreach activities both offline and online. Moreover, citizens contact MEP with diverse types of casework. At the same time data also showed that majority of MEP still prioritize and attach more importance to their legislative duties as oppose to their constituency work. With respect to MEP's Internet usage, the thesis findings further suggest that it is yet premature to conclude that the 'virtual constituency office' is replacing the conventional constituency (offline).

Defence date: 09/12/2009
Examining board: John Bell (Cambridge University); Bruno De Witte (EUI); Otto Pfersmann (Université Paris 1 Panthéon-Sorbonne); Jacques Ziller (Supervisor, former EUI, Università di Pavia)
PDF of thesis uploaded from the Library digital archive of EUI PhD theses
Devolved bodies are local and regional authorities in the Member States mainly responsible for economic development, environment, transport... In these fields, EU law has progressively become preponderant. How do the devolved bodies implement the European Law? What are the legal consequences and their responsibilities? Firstly, I take a special interest in the foundations of the norms of devolution in Great Britain, federalism in Germany and décentralisation in France. All entities qualified as 'devolved entities' have a power to make subordinate legislation in these matters. It is necessary to note that EC law is uninterested in the form of the national measures applying EC law. It is more a question of degree of decentralization of the state. Secondly, the problem raised results from the legally binding legislation taken on the basis of the EC Treaty. Regulations, directives which are 'sufficiently clear, precise and unconditional' and decisions are directly applicable in national orders. The possibility of confrontation with a national norm, general as individual, is problematic. The Simmenthal jurisprudence implies the national norm should be put aside, even when valid. European law has no competence to regulate the territorial organization of Member States. The principle of institutional autonomy drawn by the ECJ prohibits any interference of the European norm. European institutions are thus limited to the material competences. Consequently, the European norm directly applicable lacks an important element of a normal norm, which is the determination of the organ. That means that this norm cannot be effective without the national norm which is exclusively competent for this determination. Finally, I raise two important problems. On the one hand, the complexity of European law shows the failure to adapt to the coordination between the devolved administration, the national representation and the EU. On the other hand, I underline the lack of direct constraint towards devolved entities which apply European law insofar as the state assumes this responsibility for them. That explains, in part, why the British and French states tend to keep the control of the implementation of European law. The German Länder stand out from this tendency according to general powers enshrined in the Grundgesetz.

Defence date: 18 October 2011
Examining Board: Prof. Alexander Trechsel, European University Institute; Prof. Peter Mair (†), European University Institute (Supervisor); Prof. Stefano Bartolini, European University Institute; Prof. Florence Haegel, Sciences-Po Paris; Prof. Robert Ladrech, Keele University
PDF of thesis uploaded from the Library digital archive of EUI PhD theses
This thesis deals with the ways distinct types of parties in government or in opposition have adapted their strategies of competition to handle EU integration. The thesis draws on data from four countries – Britain, France, Ireland and Spain – over the past 15 years of electoral politics. The thesis provides a comparative and longitudinal analysis of their strategies of politicisation and of depoliticisation in relation with the parties? different statuses within their party systems (incumbent, mainstream opposition and peripheral opposition) and in three distinct arenas (national elections, European elections and EU referendums). It investigates how these parties have handled EU issues in three complementary dimensions of their activities: in their strategies of political communication, in intra-party debates over the EU and in their responses to the consolidation of the European electoral arena. The thesis uses a mix-method approach based on claims-making analysis, thick qualitative comparisons and descriptive statistics. Contradicting the idea of a gradual europeanisation, it first provides evidence for the stable marginalisation and nationalisation of EU affairs. Second, while the rise of euroscepticism is often discussed, the thesis demonstrates that conflicts over EU matters are rarely prominent in practice, and that they remain sporadic and confined to certain electoral channels, with mainstream parties actively compartmentalising the potential divisive effects of EU issues within their organisations. Third, it points to the centrality of the twofold behaviour of opposition parties, explaining why the politicisation of EU matters has remained contextual and less linked to the role of radical parties than is usually recognised. It finally delineates a process of increasing seclusion between the national and European political arenas that can be observed through the trajectories of MEPs careers in relation to their domestic political spaces or through the disengagement of national parties from campaigning in EU elections.

Defence date: 23 October 2008
Examining Board: Prof. Jacques Ziller, (European University Institute, Supervisor);Prof. Bruno de Witte, (European University Institute); Prof. Walter Van Gerven, (Professor emeritus KU Leuven, U Maastricht, U Tilburg); Judge Horstpeter Kreppel, (President of the First Chamber of the European Civil Service Tribunal)
Awarded the Mauro Cappelletti Prize for the best comparative law doctoral thesis, 2009.
First made available online 16 December 2014.
This thesis examines the principle of Member State liability for breaches of European Community law committed by a national court adjudicating at last instance as established in the European Court of Justice's ruling of September 2003 in Gerhard Köbler v. Republic of Austria (C-224/01). It focuses on the ECJ's assessment in the case of the various approaches to Member State liability for judicial breaches under the national laws of the (then) fifteen EU Member States and extends the analysis to an enlarged Europe of 27. In an attempt to verify the Court's conclusions, namely that the concept of State liability for judicial breaches constitutes a common principle that has been accepted in most EU Member States, the thesis embarks on a comparative analysis of the prevailing national legal concepts in the area of State liability for judicial breaches. The categorisation of the different systems into four groups allows for the creation of a general taxonomy of the various national approaches to the question. An in-depth analysis of one national system per category then sheds light on the general concepts of public liability in the 27 Member States. The prototypes representing the four groups are the United Kingdom, Austria, France and Belgium. Apart from the analysis of the framework and composition of the respective State liability regimes, special attention is directed to the interaction of the Köbler-principle on the Community level with the effective framework of State liability in the national prototypes. Against this background, the thesis provides a general reflection on the substantive and procedural difficulties arising in the course of the application of the Köbler-principle under each national remedial framework. In doing so, several issues are addressed, including the impact of liability à la Köbler on the principles of legal certainty and the impartiality of the judiciary, as well as the question of a possible violation of the principle of res judicata. Furthermore, the study addresses the claim that Köbler triggers the development of an indirect appellate procedure to the ECJ giving it the role of a 'quasi-final court of appeal'. In addition, the thesis seeks to unravel past and present problems of communication between the ECJ and the national supreme courts and discusses a possible change from the ECJ's traditional cooperative approach towards incompliant national supreme courts to a more assertive stance which suggests that non-compliance by the national court in question, with its obligation to make a reference for a preliminary ruling under Article 234(3) EC, might incur the liability of the Member State in question.

碩士
南華大學
國際事務與企業學系歐洲研究碩士班
103
The Agency against Corruption (AAC) in Taiwan has been established over three years since July 20, 2011 to take charge of formulation and enforcement of the government's corruption-eradication policy and some gratifying results in corruption control have been achieved. However, Taiwan still ranked 35th in the Corruption Perception Index (CPI) announced by Transparency International (TI) in 2014. Taiwan belongs to moderately corrupt country among all evaluated countries. Compared with other democratic advanced countries, Taiwan still has room for improvement. 　　Some advanced European countries rank always on the top countries in the CPI but the ranking of Taiwan changed between the 32th and 37th in recent years. Therefore, in order to promote the integrity and effectiveness of the Taiwan government, this research selected two highly honest and clean European governments, Denmark, and Finland, and compared them with the Taiwan government and deeply explored the integrity system in three aspects, the evolution, operation and effectiveness of the implementation including the anti-corruption institutions, laws and practices of corruption combating. The integrity systems of selected countries were compared with the integrity system of Taiwan and the strengths of the selected countries were pointed out and suggestions were made to facilitate the promotion of the integrity and effectiveness of the Taiwan government.

Face a momentos de crise financeira, os Bancos Centrais perceberam que a política monetária convencional não estava a ser eficaz para alcançar os seus objetivos para a economia. Neste contexto, foram implementadas medidas de política monetária de carácter não convencional, entre elas o QE. Este programa consiste na compra massiva de títulos por parte dos Bancos Centrais e serviu para alivar a tensão dos mercados financeiros. Embora o início do QE na Zona Euro (2015) tenha sido anunciado mais tarde do que nos EUA (2008) e que no Reino Unido (2009), o BCE implementou outras medidas não convencionais. Na presente dissertação são descritos os programas de QE da Fed, do BoE e do BCE, bem como é feita uma análise comparativa do efeito dos programas de QE nas yields das OT dos EUA, do Reino Unido e de quatro países representativos da heterogeneidade económica da Zona Euro – Alemanha e França, como principais países, Portugal e Itália, como países periféricos. Os resultados permitiram concluir que, no geral, as yields das OT descem e que o efeito do QE nas yields das OT da Zona Euro aparenta ser modesto comparativamente ao efeito do QE nas yields das OT dos EUA e do Reino Unido. Entre os países representativos da Zona Euro, o maior impacto acumulado evidencia-se nos países periféricos. Decorridos seis meses depois de o BCE ter posto um término ao seu programa de QE, foi possível constatar que a experiência europeia não segue o caminho da experiência dos EUA.
In the face of times of financial crisis, Central Banks realized that conventional monetary policy was not being effective in achieving its goals for the economy. In this context, unconventional monetary policy measures, including the QE, were implemented. This program consists of the massive purchase of securities by Central Banks and served to ease the tension of the financial markets. Although the start of QE in the Eurozone (2015) was announced later than in the United States of America (2008) and the United Kingdom (2009), the ECB implemented other unconventional measures. The present study aims to describe the Fed, BoE and ECB QE programs, as well as analyzing in comparative manner the effect of QE programs on government bond yields of the United States of America, United Kingdom and four countries representing the economic heterogeneity of the Eurozone - Germany and France, as main countries, Portugal and Italy, as peripheral countries. The results show that, overall, government bond yields decrease and the effect of QE on Eurozone government bonds yields appears to be more modest when compared to the effect of QE on United States of America and United Kingdom government bonds yields. Among the representative countries of the Eurozone, the greatest cumulative impact is evident in peripheral countries. Six months after the ECB terminated its QE program, it appears that the European experience does not follow the United States of America experience of ending the QE.

Esta tesis analiza desde una perspectiva comparada cómo los partidos socialistas han adaptado sus estrategias discursivas para justificar las políticas de austeridad en España y Portugal durante el manejo de la crisis, pretendiendo comprender los fundamentos de los giros políticos en base a los imperativos de las instituciones europeas y a la disputa de la democracia. El objeto de la investigación parte de la situación de crisis que vive la socialdemocracia europea por las dificultades y contradicciones ideológicas después de adoptar las políticas de austeridad. Por un lado, analizo el giro a la austeridad y la estrategia conservadora que los socialistas implementan para recuperar el liderazgo y retornar a los gobiernos después de las salidas abruptas en el 2011. Por otro lado, y en un segundo momento político, el giro a la izquierda, que en el caso portugués se fragua a través del acuerdo de gobierno con las fuerzas de izquierdas, que permite consolidar la solidez del PS; en el caso español, este giro se produce después del estallido de la mayor crisis organizativa del PSOE después de la Transición. Por tanto, el gobierno de izquierdas en Portugal representa un caso paradigmático como modelo de gobierno para el futuro de la socialdemocracia. Por último, desde un análisis normativo argumento que las políticas públicas desde su concepción emancipatoria pueden ser la llave para un gobierno a la portuguesa en España.
From a comparative perspective, this thesis sets out to analyze how the socialist parties have adapted their discourse during the financial crisis in order to justify austerity in both Spain and Portugal. In this work we intend to understand the foundations of the twists and turns in discourse, which have its epicentre in the imperative demand of the European Institutions and the dispute of democracy. The object of this investigation has its departing point the crisis of the European social democracy due to its ideological difficulties and contradictions after adopting the austerity measures. Henceforth, we analyse the change in discourse and its strategy to recover both political initiative and leadership in order for socialist parties to return to power. In the Portuguese case, the leftward turn is discourse launched through an agreement of governance with other leftwing parties. In the Spanish case, this turn is made evident after the collapse of negotiations with the emerging political parties after the two general elections held. For these reasons, the left wing government in Portugal represents a paradigmatic case as a model of government for European social democracy. Lastly, from a normative perspective we argue that public policies can be key for a Portuguese style government in Spain and, confirming its emancipatory character, an alternative way of government to austerity.

My thesis is an analysis of my own translation of a chapter from Dominik Nagl's legal history 'Grenzfälle,' which addresses questions of citizenship and nationality in the context of the German colonies in Africa and the South Pacific. My analysis focuses primarily on strategies that I used in an effort to preserve the strangeness of a linguistic context that is, in many ways, "foreign" to twenty first-century North Americans while also striving to avoid reproducing the violence embedded in language that is historically laden with extreme power disparities.