Beyond the Myth of Nationality: A Study on the Networks of European Commission Officials

Abstract

Working and communicating with and across nations and nationalities makes cultural differences a permanent part of everyday reality in multinational organisations like the European Commission. It has been frequently argued that nationality forms an important basis for forming networks in and around the European Union (EU) institutions due to the ease of establishing communication and connection resulting from sharing a culture. In the case of Commission officials, there are two competing forces that could potentially shape their networks: their nationality (via their cultural identity) and supranationality (via their organisational belonging). As an individual, Commission officials might prefer to form their networks with officials who are culturally similar to them since this eases communication and cooperation. The supranational values and the multinational setting of the Commission, however, might make such a preference impossible or inappropriate to put into practice. This is the overall puzzle underlying this research on the networking patterns of Commission officials. This book addresses the research questions, 'Do Commission officials have national networks? Why or why not?' It takes a systematic approach to investigating networks, beginning with the deconstruction of the concept itself. Theoretically and methodologically, this study takes a multidisciplinary angle by borrowing from and relying on theories and tools of public administration, political science, organisational sociology and anthropology. Empirical material constitutes the heart of this thesis, consisting of 82 interviews with Commission officials in four Directorates-General and five months of participant observation in the Commission. The data is analysed by combining qualitative and quantitative methods. The empirical evidence shows that same nationality contacts are the exception rather than the rule for task-related purposes. There are also no significant differences between nationalities in terms of 'sticking to each other'. The only exception is the case of large member state officials, an occurrence which is explained by the officials to be a sheer effect of numbers of officials each member state has. Officials do not contact fellow nationals just because they come from the same country. Nor do Commission officials allow cultural convenience to determine whom they will turn to. Commission officials are specialised in specific files which in some cases require very specific technical or scientific expertise. This is a world where the dividing lines are not drawn by country maps but by functional maps, the content of which are shaped by the needs and concerns of the policy sector officials belong to, given by the Directorate-General they are working in. Commission officials have gone beyond the myth of nationality through their international backgrounds and their experience in a multinational working environment.