Improved soft law implementation with national ownership: evidence from the European Semester

Publikation: Bidrag til tidsskriftTidsskriftartikelfagfællebedømt

An increasing amount of research on the concept of national ownership in EU soft law governance has generated a lot of insights on: (1) its conceptualization; (2) how EU institutions foster national ownership; (3) the extent to which member state governments and other stakeholders obtain ownership. Despite all of this valuable progress, however, it remains unclear as to whether increased national ownership really improves the implementation of soft law. Based on the insights from the important management school of compliance theory, this study begins by theorizing why the member states would comply with international agreements, which they have ownership of. Then, based on an analysis of a unique dataset from the European Semester, the findings indicate that member states implement the EU recommendations better when the governments have a high level of ownership. Therefore, this study confirms the potential of enhancing national ownership in improving soft law implementation in the EU.
OriginalsprogEngelsk
TidsskriftComparative European Politics
Vol/bind20
Udgave nummer1
Sider (fra-til)1–32
ISSN1472-4790
DOI
StatusUdgivet - 2021

ID: 278478345