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Preferences, Power and Institutions in 21 st ‐century Europe
Author(s) -
Moravcsik Andrew
Publication year - 2018
Publication title -
jcms: journal of common market studies
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.54
H-Index - 90
eISSN - 1468-5965
pISSN - 0021-9886
DOI - 10.1111/jcms.12804
Subject(s) - normative , intergovernmentalism , legitimacy , institutionalism , positive economics , functionalism (philosophy of mind) , political science , epistemology , democratic legitimacy , european union , law and economics , power (physics) , sociology , european integration , law , politics , economics , philosophy , physics , quantum mechanics , economic policy
After twenty‐five years, few scholars still dispute the leading role of Liberal Intergovernmentalism (LI) in theorizing EU history. Yet some question whether it can explain Europe's recent evolution. This article argues that LI retains its place as a ‘baseline’ integration theory. It is uniquely able to provide credible micro‐foundations of EU decision‐making, which even theories ostensibly critical of LI borrow. It offers a richer set of innovative opportunities for forward‐looking extension than is often thought. Compared to competitors such as Post‐Functionalism and Historical Institutionalism, LI generates more consistently satisfying empirical accounts of recent EU policy‐making, particularly with regard to the outcomes that ultimately matter most, namely substantive policies. And it remains a trustworthy guide to normative evaluation, for example on the issue of democratic legitimacy. The future of integration theory lies in creatively elaborating LI and, where possible, crafting more rigorous syntheses with alternative accounts.