- Preface
- New to this edition
- Brexit Late News
- List of figures
- List of boxes
- List of tables
- List of contributors
- List of abbreviations
- How to use the online resources
- 1. Introduction
- Part 1 The Historical Context
- 2. The European Union: Establishment and Development
- 3. From the Constitutional Treaty to the Treaty of Lisbon and Beyond
- Part 2 Theories and Conceptual Approaches
- 4. Neo-functionalism
- 5. Intergovernmentalism
- 6. Theorizing the European Union after Integration Theory
- 7. Governance in the European Union
- 8. Europeanization
- 9. Democracy and Legitimacy in the European Union
- Part 3 Institutions and Actors
- 10. The European Commission
- 11. The European Council and the Council of the European Union
- 12. The European Parliament
- 13. The Court of Justice of the European Union
- 14. Interest Groups and the European Union
- 15. Citizens and Public Opinion in the European Union
- Part 4 Policies and Policy-making
- 16. Policy-making in the European Union
- 17. Trade and Development Policies
- 18. Enlargement
- 19. The European Union’s Foreign, Security, and Defence Policies
- 20. The Single Market
- 21. The European Union’s Social Dimension
- 22. The Area of Freedom, Security, and Justice
- 23. Economic and Monetary Union
- 24. The Common Agricultural Policy
- 25. Environmental Policy
- Part 5 Issues and Debates
- 26. The Euro Crisis and European Integration
- 27. Brexit
- 28. The Future of the EU
- Glossary
- References
- Appendix—Brexit supplement
- References
- Index
(p. 55) 4. Neo-functionalism
- Chapter:
- (p. 55) 4. Neo-functionalism
- Author(s):
Carsten Strøby Jensen
- DOI:
- 10.1093/hepl/9780198806530.003.0004
This chapter reviews a theoretical position, neo-functionalism, which was developed in the mid-1950s by scholars based in the United States. The fundamental argument of the theory is that states are not the only important actors on the international scene. As a consequence, neo-functionalists focus their attention on the role of supranational institutions and non-state actors, such as interest groups and political parties, who, they argue, are the real driving force behind integration efforts. The chapter that follows provides an introduction to the main features of neo-functionalist theory, its historical development since the 1950s and how neo-functionalism is used today. It focuses, more specifically, on three hypotheses advanced by neo-functionalists: the spillover hypothesis; the elite socialization hypothesis; and the supranational interest group hypothesis. The chapter also considers the main critiques of the theory and discusses the ups and downs in the intellectual use of neo-functionalism over the last 50 years. The final section scrutinizes the revival of interest in neo-functionalism and provides some examples of how today’s neo-functionalists differ from those of the 1950s. While neo-functionalism used to be conceptualized as a ‘grand theory’, it is now looked upon and used as a middle-range theory that explains only part of the European integration process.
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- Preface
- New to this edition
- Brexit Late News
- List of figures
- List of boxes
- List of tables
- List of contributors
- List of abbreviations
- How to use the online resources
- 1. Introduction
- Part 1 The Historical Context
- 2. The European Union: Establishment and Development
- 3. From the Constitutional Treaty to the Treaty of Lisbon and Beyond
- Part 2 Theories and Conceptual Approaches
- 4. Neo-functionalism
- 5. Intergovernmentalism
- 6. Theorizing the European Union after Integration Theory
- 7. Governance in the European Union
- 8. Europeanization
- 9. Democracy and Legitimacy in the European Union
- Part 3 Institutions and Actors
- 10. The European Commission
- 11. The European Council and the Council of the European Union
- 12. The European Parliament
- 13. The Court of Justice of the European Union
- 14. Interest Groups and the European Union
- 15. Citizens and Public Opinion in the European Union
- Part 4 Policies and Policy-making
- 16. Policy-making in the European Union
- 17. Trade and Development Policies
- 18. Enlargement
- 19. The European Union’s Foreign, Security, and Defence Policies
- 20. The Single Market
- 21. The European Union’s Social Dimension
- 22. The Area of Freedom, Security, and Justice
- 23. Economic and Monetary Union
- 24. The Common Agricultural Policy
- 25. Environmental Policy
- Part 5 Issues and Debates
- 26. The Euro Crisis and European Integration
- 27. Brexit
- 28. The Future of the EU
- Glossary
- References
- Appendix—Brexit supplement
- References
- Index