Abstract
This reply to Neil Fligsteins thought-provoking comments on this special issue’s contributions analyses three specific aspects: the problems of comparing identity construction in different policy areas due to differences in European integration; the focus on EU institutions and lack of attention to social groups and citizens; the EU as a state. We argue that instead of offering one overarching theory of EU state building, the articles analyse what most would regard as a key aspect of a state—political identity—and then consider its top-down policy aspect. This has several advantages: a degree of manageability; seeking careful hypotheses; separating parts that are conceptually distinct, notably the creation of a political identity and then whether citizens actually identify with it; investigating causal linkages.
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Saurugger, S., Thatcher, M. (2022). EU Political Identity, Integration and Top‑Down Analyses: a Reply to Neil Fligstein. In: Saurugger, S., Thatcher, M. (eds) Constructing the EU's Political Identity. Palgrave Macmillan, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-031-17407-0_11
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-031-17407-0_11
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Publisher Name: Palgrave Macmillan, Cham
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Online ISBN: 978-3-031-17407-0
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