Abstract
Research on interest group lobbying in the European Union has largely analysed isolated stages of the policy process, limiting our understanding of how organised interests engage across the full trajectory of EU policymaking. This project reconceptualises lobbying as a continuous, stage-dependent process and examines how interest groups mobilise and act throughout the EU policy cycle, from agenda-setting to policy evaluation. It argues that policy stage is a key structuring condition shaping patterns of mobilisation, strategic behaviour, and political impact.
The project pursues three interrelated objectives. First, it investigates when different types of interest groups mobilise across EU policy stages. It expects that some groups concentrate their efforts at early stages to shape EU agenda-setting and policy formulation by the European Commission, while others are more active during legislative decision-making in the European Parliament and the Council, or later in the implementation and evaluation stages involving both EU and national-level authorities.
Second, it analyses how lobbying strategies vary across the EU policy cycle. It develops a stage-contingent account of strategy choice, proposing that early stages tend to be characterised by pressure-oriented strategies such as coalition-building and public campaigning, whereas later stages favour more targeted insider strategies, including direct engagement with EU institutions and the provision of technical expertise.
Third, the project examines how access and influence are distributed across EU policy stages. It distinguishes between agenda-setting influence, policy influence, and post-adoption influence, showing that patterns of effectiveness vary across stages and institutional venues. By mapping these dynamics across the EU policy cycle, the project provides a systematic account of when and where interest groups are most active and effective, and how inequalities in representation emerge within EU policymaking over time.
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