Corruption and the European Union: Comparative Analysis of Romania, Spain and France

众所周知，腐败对所有类型的政治社会都是有害的，但它往往只与发展中国家有关。它在西方国家，特别是在欧洲的存在，很少被讨论。此外，对腐败采取行动作为一个国际问题仍然是非典型的，因此，欧洲联盟在过去几年中解决腐败问题的努力具有重要意义。这项研究将检查欧盟实施的监管，以及其有效性（或缺乏有效性）。另一个调查领域将是不同欧盟国家能够在多大程度上管理内部腐败以及与欧盟有关的腐败。为此，选择了具有代表性的成员国样本：罗马尼亚、西班牙和法国。它们共同提供了欧盟内部腐败治理的全面代表，因为选择这些国家的理由受到欧盟中存在的核心-外围动态的影响；法国处于核心，罗马尼亚处于边缘，而西班牙，可以说是处于半边缘。跨站点分析将允许识别共同的模式和差异，同时保留完整的描述。本研究将采用扎根理论的方法。数据将通过案头调查和实地调查收集，实地调查将包括对关键利益相关者（政策制定者、政治家、律师、学者等）的采访。这项研究将填补腐败文献中的一个重大空白。

While is common knowledge that corruption is detrimental to all types of political society, it is often associated solely with developing countries. Its presence in Western countries, particularly in Europe, is only rarely discussed. Moreover, acting on corruption as an international problem remains atypical, hence the significance of the European Union's attempts to tackle corruption in the last few years. This research will examine the regulation put in place by the EU, as well as its efficacy ( or lack thereof). Another area of investigation will be the extent to which different EU countries are able to manage corruption internally and in relation to the EU. For this, a representative sample of members states has been chosen: Romania, Spain and France. Jointly, they proivide a comprehensive representation of the governance of corruption within the EU, since the rationale for selecting these countries is influenced by the core-periphery dynamics present in the EU; France is in the core, Romania is in the periphery, and Spain, it can be argued, is in the semi-periphery. Cross-site analysis will allow the identification of common patterns and differences whilst retaining thorough description. The research will adopt the grounded theory approach. The data will be collected through desk research as well as through field research, which will include interviews with key stakeholders (policy-makeers, politicans, lawyers, academics, etc). The research will fill a major gap in the literature of corruption.