Hoareau, Cécile
(2009)
Does deliberation matter?: the impact of the Bologna process on attitudes and policies in European higher education.
PhD thesis, London School of Economics and Political Science.
Abstract
This research analyses the impact of deliberative governance mechanisms on policy reforms.
This mode of governance involves the direct participation of state and non-state actors in meetings,
during which participants are open to the exchange of arguments about a particular policy space and
to reaching an agreement which can be non-binding. This research develops the theoretical claim
that deliberative governance has a significant impact on the cognitive aspect of domestic policies and
in particular individual attitudes. It focuses on the Bologna process that has been at the heart of
European-wide reforms of higher education and investigates three aspects. First, a survey of
participants in the Bologna process shows how their attitudes have changed. Secondly, case studies
of the Sorbonne and Bologna agreements of the 25th of May 1998 and the 19th of June 1999
investigate how those changes of attitudes and policies fit participants’ interests. Thirdly, a
comparison between reforms in England and France (mid-1980s-2007) discusses how changes of
attitudes relate to domestic policy changes.
The study explores two mechanisms that have been widely held to facilitate reforms, namely
‘learning’ and ‘strategic use’. The study finds that participants are open to changing their perceptions
and receiving information on policy options in deliberations if it fits their interests. Deliberations also
help diffuse paradigms which facilitate domestic reforms. More importantly, deliberative governance
obeys a certain hierarchy when influencing individual attitudes. It starts by changing the most
instrumental attitudes. However, all attitudes are connected, leading to a spiralling effect toward
attitude change concerning more fundamental domestic reforms. Deliberative governance therefore
has the potential to create some convergence in certain policy areas. This research contributes to the
relevant European integration literature on deliberative governance and policy change by drawing on
theoretical insights from the wide literature on cognitive theories. It also adds to the specialist field of
studies concerning the European higher education area.
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