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Network Capital and Cooperation Patterns in the Working Groups of the Council of the EU
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1028-3625
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EUI RSCAS; 2007/14
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NAURIN, Daniel, Network Capital and Cooperation Patterns in the Working Groups of the Council of the EU, EUI RSCAS, 2007/14 - https://hdl.handle.net/1814/6762
Abstract
This working paper presents findings from a study of network capital and cooperation patterns in the
working groups of the Council of the European Union. Two successive rounds of telephone interviews
with Council working group representatives from all member states were conducted in 2003 and 2006.
It is demonstrated that some member states have a consistently higher stock of network capital (having
close ties to a large number of powerful cooperation partners) than others, over time and across policy
fields. Size explains a lot of this variation, but there is also room for actor-based factors. For small
states in particular inter-personal trust seems to have a positive effect. The findings also indicate that
cooperation patterns in the Council working groups follow geographical patterns. The dominant
North-South dimension is consistent across policy fields. Rather than having one ‘core’ the EU15
Council revolved around a North (the Netherlands, Sweden and the UK) and a South (France, Italy,
Spain) center, connected by Germany. The 2004 enlargement did not change this pattern, but only
added new groups of countries to the periphery around the two main centers. There is evidence to
suggest that the geographical cooperation patterns are mainly driven by cultural factors, rather than
economic interests or political ideologies.