Applying the Concept of Europeanization to the Study of Foreign Policy: Dimensions and Mechanisms

Recent years have witnessed a growing interest in applying the Europeanization concept to the study of foreign policy. Discussing how foreign policy Europeanization relates to Europeanization research in other areas of EU governance as well as to traditional approaches from the International Relations discipline, we examine the added value of studying foreign policy through the lens of Europeanization. As there is by now a considerable diversity of explanations for EU-induced changes of the national foreign policies of EU Member States, we propose important conceptual refinements, providing a clear distinction between the dimensions of Europeanization, their respective outcomes and particularly the mechanisms that drive Europeanization in these different dimensions. Overall, this working paper illustrates that Europeanization research addresses important shortcomings of International Relations approaches dominant in the field of European foreign policy analysis. By focusing on the interplay of “top-down” and “bottom-up” dynamics between the EU and national levels, which have been previously considered as isolated phenomena, the Europeanization concept contributes to a better understanding of the complex nature of European foreign policy-making.Europeanization; CFSP/ESDP; CFSP/ESDP; CFSP/ESDP; international relations; expert committees; socialization; national interest; political science

EU member states at the UN: a case of Europeanisation arrested?

This article addresses two questions about the EU’s and EU member states’ diplomacy in the UN General Assembly’s Third Committee and the Human Rights Council: Have EU member states been more, or less, active outside the framework of EU coordination since the entry into force of the Lisbon Treaty? Has EU activity increased? The findings are that EU member states have been increasingly active at the Human Rights Council and have increasingly worked with other states outside of the EU, while the level of EU activity has remained largely the same. In the Third Committee, member states speak more than the EU but neither the EU or member states have been sponsoring more resolutions. Europeanisation is ‘arrested’ in these cases, as member states are reluctant to push for more EU activity because both the internal intergovernmental decision-making system and external context discourage it

EU-ASEAN Relations: The Importance of Values, Norms and Culture. EU Centre, Singapore Working Paper No. 1, June 2010

This working paper investigates the various factors underpinning relations between the European Union (EU) and the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN). As the EU and ASEAN have a long-standing relationship, which dates back to the 1970s, and EU-ASEAN cooperation has been very successful in the area of trade, it seems strange that political relations between the two regions have been comparatively indifferent. This working paper shows that important reasons for the low-key character of EU-ASEAN relations can be found in the differences in values, norms and culture between Europe and Asia. These differences have become most obvious over the inclusion of human rights and democracy clauses in their cooperation and with regard to the question of how to treat Burma/Myanmar. Paying particular attention to these two issues and the importance of values, norms and culture, this working paper re-assesses the current state of EU-ASEAN relations

EU-ASEAN relations : the importance of values, norms and culture

This working paper investigates the various factors underpinning relations between the European Union (EU) and the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN). As the EU and ASEAN have a long-standing relationship, which dates back to the 1970s, and EU-ASEAN cooperation has been very successful in the area of trade, it seems strange that political relations between the two regions have been comparatively indifferent. This working paper shows that important reasons for the low-key character of EU-ASEAN relations can be found in the differences in values, norms and culture between Europe and Asia. These differences have become most obvious over the inclusion of human rights and democracy clauses in their cooperation and with regard to the question of how to treat Burma/Myanmar. Paying particular attention to these two issues and the importance of values, norms and culture, this working paper re-assesses the current state of EU-ASEAN relations

Nonword reading and Stroop interference: What differentiates attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder and reading disability?

Background: Attention deficits and impaired reading performance co-occur more often than expected by chance; however, the underlying mechanism of this association still remains rather unexplored. Method: In two consecutive studies, children aged 8 to 12 years with attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) and children with reading disability (RD) were examined using a 2 (ADHD versus no ADHD) × 2 (RD versus no RD) factorial design. To further delineate deficient interference control from reading processes, we used a newly developed self-paced word/nonword reading task (Experiment 1, n = 68) and a modified computerized Stroop paradigm, including an orthographic phonological neighbor (OPN) condition (Experiment 2, n = 84). Results: RD (compared to non-RD groups) was associated with impairments in both word and nonword reading, while children with ADHD also showed impaired nonword reading. In the Stroop task, RD, but not ADHD, had a significant impact on task performance. Interestingly, a significant interaction between ADHD, RD, and task condition emerged, which was due to particularly slower reaction times to nonwords in children with RD only, while task performance in children with comorbid ADHD and RD resembled that of ADHD only. Conclusions: Thus, our results demonstrate that impairments in nonword reading were not specific to RD but were also present in children with ADHD. In addition, RD and not ADHD was characterized by poor interference control in the Stroop task. These findings question whether unique cognitive deficits are specific to either ADHD or RD