principal-agent theory

This strand of research looks at various aspects of decision-making within in the Council of the European Union, including the measurement of actor preferences, their powers with respect to agenda-setting and bargaining, and the production of particular procedural outcomes, such as consensual decisions.

Beginning with my PhD dissertation, several of my studies examine the role played by diplomats and other national officials in shaping the process and outcome of decision-making in the Council of the European Union. Collectively, they help to improve our understanding of the internal decision-making process of the Council, which has long been seen as a ‘black box’.

Shadow rapporteurs play an important role in developing the European Parliament’s collective policy positions and in defending them in …

Research on the intra-institutional consequences of differences in the EU’s interinstitutional rule configurations is rare. This study …

The proper distribution of powers between the supranational institutions and the member states of the European Union is the object of …

Many legislative decisions of the Council of the European Union are de facto made in preparatory bodies by national officials and …

Committees of national officials play a major role in the decision-making of the European Union’s main legislative body, the …

Little systematic empirical research exists about legislative decision-making in the Council of the European Union. This study …