The Building Blocks of a Euroregion : novel Metrics to Measure Cross-border Integration
(2015) In Journal of European Integration 37(3). p.371-389- Abstract
The article explores how the notion of European integration at the local level can be conceptualized and measured. Based on a process-oriented inclusive understanding of integration and using relational datasets that maps both domestic and cross-border communication ties among political representatives in four Euroregions along the borders of Hungary–Slovakia and Sweden–Norway, we begin by applying and theoretically dissecting network-analytical metrics based on frequency of ties. Despite finding that such measures capture analytically relevant properties of political cross-border networks, we argue that they are less than ideal for capturing the notion of political integration. Instead, with inspiration from the blockmodeling tradition... (More)
The article explores how the notion of European integration at the local level can be conceptualized and measured. Based on a process-oriented inclusive understanding of integration and using relational datasets that maps both domestic and cross-border communication ties among political representatives in four Euroregions along the borders of Hungary–Slovakia and Sweden–Norway, we begin by applying and theoretically dissecting network-analytical metrics based on frequency of ties. Despite finding that such measures capture analytically relevant properties of political cross-border networks, we argue that they are less than ideal for capturing the notion of political integration. Instead, with inspiration from the blockmodeling tradition in network analysis, we propose two novel metrics—cross-border connectivity and integrational overfitting. These metrics not only enrich our understanding of political integration in cross-border settings but also can serve as useful mapping tools for policy-makers. A software client enabling the analysis of these measures supplements this article.
(Less)
- author
- Svensson, Sara LU and Nordlund, Carl LU
- publishing date
- 2015-04-16
- type
- Contribution to journal
- publication status
- published
- subject
- keywords
- blockmodeling, cross-border cooperation, euroregions, network analysis
- in
- Journal of European Integration
- volume
- 37
- issue
- 3
- pages
- 19 pages
- publisher
- Routledge
- external identifiers
-
- scopus:84925035835
- ISSN
- 0703-6337
- DOI
- 10.1080/07036337.2014.968568
- language
- English
- LU publication?
- no
- id
- 8e037701-abba-415e-8def-b760bbb467bb
- date added to LUP
- 2016-11-22 13:44:06
- date last changed
- 2024-02-02 14:59:00
@article{8e037701-abba-415e-8def-b760bbb467bb, abstract = {{<p>The article explores how the notion of European integration at the local level can be conceptualized and measured. Based on a process-oriented inclusive understanding of integration and using relational datasets that maps both domestic and cross-border communication ties among political representatives in four Euroregions along the borders of Hungary–Slovakia and Sweden–Norway, we begin by applying and theoretically dissecting network-analytical metrics based on frequency of ties. Despite finding that such measures capture analytically relevant properties of political cross-border networks, we argue that they are less than ideal for capturing the notion of political integration. Instead, with inspiration from the blockmodeling tradition in network analysis, we propose two novel metrics—cross-border connectivity and integrational overfitting. These metrics not only enrich our understanding of political integration in cross-border settings but also can serve as useful mapping tools for policy-makers. A software client enabling the analysis of these measures supplements this article.</p>}}, author = {{Svensson, Sara and Nordlund, Carl}}, issn = {{0703-6337}}, keywords = {{blockmodeling; cross-border cooperation; euroregions; network analysis}}, language = {{eng}}, month = {{04}}, number = {{3}}, pages = {{371--389}}, publisher = {{Routledge}}, series = {{Journal of European Integration}}, title = {{The Building Blocks of a Euroregion : novel Metrics to Measure Cross-border Integration}}, url = {{http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/07036337.2014.968568}}, doi = {{10.1080/07036337.2014.968568}}, volume = {{37}}, year = {{2015}}, }