Legislating softly: The effect of preference heterogeneity on the share of EU soft-law instruments over time

Research output: Contribution to journalArticleAcademicpeer-review

37 Downloads (Pure)

Abstract

This study analyses how preference heterogeneity across EU member states affects the adoption of soft-law acts over time. On the one hand, high diversity in policy preferences is expected to increase the proportion of soft-law instruments because governments are less likely to agree to binding measures. Conversely, preference heterogeneity could also decrease soft law due to the perceived threat of compliance problems. We test these competing arguments using a dataset on all EU soft-law and hard-law instruments adopted between 1967 and 2019. The results show that preference heterogeneity increases the share of soft EU instruments. However, more past heterogeneity prompts EU legislators to decrease the proportion of softer measures in areas that experience high levels of past non-compliance.
Original languageEnglish
Pages (from-to)447-469
Number of pages23
JournalEuropean Union Politics
Volume24
Issue number3
Early online date17 Mar 2023
DOIs
Publication statusPublished - Sept 2023

Bibliographical note

Publisher Copyright:
© The Author(s) 2023.

Research programs

  • ESSB PA

Fingerprint

Dive into the research topics of 'Legislating softly: The effect of preference heterogeneity on the share of EU soft-law instruments over time'. Together they form a unique fingerprint.

Cite this