Conclusion: Rethinking the European Union

Abstract

This book thinks about the EU in a different way to the traditional approaches to European integration and EU studies. It does not propose a new ‘integration theory’, nor does it attempt a detailed description of particular events or developments in Brussels. Instead, it argues that we can improve our understanding of how the EU works by applying our general understanding of the main processes in modern political systems to the EU. The key underlying assumption, then, is that the EU is already a fully-functioning political system. Because of this, political science has a lot to teach us about the EU. Conversely, since the EU is an unusual political system, we can also improve our general understanding of political science. In so doing, this book attempts to integrate research and teaching on the EU into the mainstream study of politics.

What does political science teach us about the EU?

What does the EU teach us about political science?