The Social Constructivist Fusion Perspective: A Theory for Europeanization

Abstract

This article seeks to explain the role of identity politics in defining national elites' perceptions of the European Union (EU) and their subsequent foreign-policy choices. It is argued that when analysing the foreign-policy choices of national elites, not only interests and preferences, but also identity questions must be taken into account. In any national context, ideas, identities and perceptions of self and the EU are expected to impact on subsequent policy choices about Europe. This article seeks to explain this impact by applying a combination of the fusion and social constructivist approaches.