This challenging book argues convincingly that research on European integration has lagged behind important theoretical developments in the fields of international relations, international political economy, and international organization. The contributors contend that prevailing theories of integration—despite their considerable differences—all suffer from an excessive focus on institutions and ideas, while overlooking the ways in which these institutions and ideas have promoted a neoliberal agenda during the last decade. To overcome these weaknesses, this volume draws on one of the key strands of theoretical innovation—critical political economy or transnational historical materialism—to develop a more comprehensive and consistent analysis of processes of European integration. Although not claiming that states have ceded their role as "masters of the treaties," the contributors develop innovative case studies of national and transnational processes to illustrate the salience of trans-European business networks and the primacy of neoliberalism as central organizing concepts of the post-Maastricht European project.
Contributions by: Baastian van Apeldoorn, Hans-Jürgen Bieling, Alan W. Cafruny, Ben Clift, Stephen Gill, Colin Hay, Otto Holman, Henk Overbeek, Kees van der Pijl, Magnus Ryner, Thorsten Schulten, Giles Scott-Smith, Leila Simona Talani, and Matthew Watson.