Leiden University Student Repository

Uiterwijk, Alex (2020)

Exploring the importance of EU policy: A case study approach to methods of measuring salience in EU interest group studies

Master thesis | International Relations (MA)

The thesis focuses on the operationalisation of salience in EU interest group studies. The research question posed was what effects does the method of measurement have on the concept of salience in EU lobby research? A case-study approach was chosen to answer the study. The study used various methods to identify the level of three types of salience (public, interest group and political salience). The thesis used the Factiva newspaper database, Twitter, official documents of the legislative process, consultations, and a Eurobarometer to measure the level of salience. It found differences on the level of salience based on the choice of language used for queries, the type of salience measured, and the type of actors measured. Moreover, it found that using a different baseline to measure salience has an impact on the outcome of the measurement. Finally, it found that saliency chances over time.

Salience

EU Lobbying

Interest Group Studies

Interest Group Lobbying

Whistle-blower Directive

Author

Uiterwijk, Alex

Faculty

Faculty of Humanities

Specialisation

European Union Studies

Supervisors

Cornelissen, Marije

ECTS Credits

15

Language

en