Academia.eduAcademia.edu

Cohesion Policy

description656 papers
group4,398 followers
lightbulbAbout this topic
Cohesion Policy refers to the European Union's strategy aimed at promoting economic, social, and territorial cohesion by reducing disparities between regions. It involves financial support and investment in less developed areas to enhance growth, employment, and overall quality of life, thereby fostering balanced development across member states.
lightbulbAbout this topic
Cohesion Policy refers to the European Union's strategy aimed at promoting economic, social, and territorial cohesion by reducing disparities between regions. It involves financial support and investment in less developed areas to enhance growth, employment, and overall quality of life, thereby fostering balanced development across member states.

Key research themes

1. How do institutional quality and non-linear effects influence the economic growth and convergence outcomes of EU Cohesion Policy?

This research area focuses on understanding the nuanced relationships between Cohesion Policy (CP) funding intensity, institutional quality, and their combined impact on regional economic growth and convergence within the EU. Recognizing heterogeneity in CP effectiveness, this theme addresses the challenge of modeling and empirically detecting non-linearities and moderating institutional factors that shape CP outcomes, particularly at highly disaggregated regional levels. It is vital because it underpins policy adjustments aimed at efficient fund allocation and maximizing growth and equity objectives.

Key finding: This study innovatively extended the conventional β-convergence model by incorporating 2- and 3-way multiplicative interaction terms, explicitly modeling institutions as moderators of the CP intensity-growth-convergence... Read more
Key finding: This thematic exploration evidences that the effectiveness of CP is highly context-dependent, with institutional quality identified as a key conditioning factor. Comparative analyses show significant positive impacts of CP on... Read more
Key finding: Using β-convergence frameworks for the period 1995-2020, this study confirmed that convergence within the EU is not homogeneous but linked to social and economic dimensions influenced by institutional heterogeneities. The... Read more
Key finding: This study emphasized that regional resilience and transmission of macroeconomic shocks are fundamentally mediated by institutional quality, sectoral diversification, and innovation capacity. During the 2008 economic crisis,... Read more

2. What are the territorial and governance challenges to effective EU Cohesion Policy implementation in diverse regional contexts?

This theme investigates spatial disparities within and between regions, the role of multilevel governance, and the institutional capacity of local and national actors in shaping CP outcomes. It critically examines how EU Cohesion Policy interacts with national and regional frameworks, the challenges of inner peripheries, local development capacities, and the political economy of fund allocation—especially under pressures from crises, enlargement, and Brexit. Addressing this theme informs policies fostering territorial cohesion and sustainable local development through improved governance and integrated place-based strategies.

Key finding: This paper highlights the increasing salience of member states in the governance and impact of Cohesion Policy, emphasizing the 'missing middle' institutional level between supranational and regional actors. It argues that... Read more
Key finding: This study identifies the challenges Brexit poses for UK regional development in the absence of EU Cohesion Policy funding. It underscores the multi-level governance structures supported by CP, which contributed to strategic,... Read more
Key finding: Focuses on local development within EU and pre-accession contexts, showing that despite legal frameworks for decentralization, municipalities in Western Balkans (e.g., Albania) face deficits in technical and financial... Read more
Key finding: This report anticipates the significant institutional, financial, and governance challenges posed by EU enlargement, emphasizing the critical role of local and regional authorities (LRAs) in a changing ESIF allocation and... Read more

3. How can social and territorial cohesion be conceptually defined and empirically measured to better evaluate EU Cohesion Policy outcomes?

This theme addresses conceptual and methodological challenges in defining and measuring social and territorial cohesion, essential for assessing Cohesion Policy effectiveness beyond economic outputs. It explores multi-dimensional, multi-level constructs of cohesion encompassing social relations, identity, inclusion, territorial cooperation, and governance. Improved measurement frameworks and integrative indicators enable nuanced evaluations and support shaping policies that account for diverse social and spatial dynamics, thus fostering durable and inclusive cohesion.

Key finding: The paper provides a theoretical and empirical framework treating social cohesion as a multidimensional, multilevel concept integrating subjective attitudes and objective social relations, spanning behavioral and attitudinal... Read more
Key finding: Employing multidimensional scaling and confirmatory factor analysis on microdata from the European Values Study 1999, this study constructed social cohesion indicators encompassing affiliation, inclusion, participation,... Read more
Key finding: Using original survey data from 17 EU regions, this article reveals that citizens' awareness of EU Cohesion Policy and perceived benefits (both personal and regional) positively correlate with their cognitive European... Read more
Key finding: This special issue review reveals territorial cohesion remains an under-theorized and under-measured dimension of EU Cohesion Policy goals. The authors find that while CP investments aim at balanced territorial development,... Read more

All papers in Cohesion Policy

Moving from a long-established literature on the formulas and mechanisms of differentiated integration, this contribution explains the possible evolutions of the European political space in terms of a renewed meaning of that principle of... more
This paper looks at the relationship between the main features of publicly funded R&D projects and the creation of research jobs. Based on projectlevel data on 1,435 innovation projects implemented in Attica (Greece) during the 2007-2013... more
This paper examines the systematic association between project characteristics and state spending absorption. Based on the project-level data of 1,400 publicly funded R&D activities applied in the Attica region (2007-2016), we estimate... more
Note: This is a sample of 13 records. The complete dataset contains 5000 records covering all 27 EU member states. Full dataset available via Zenodo DOI .
This study explores the impact of cohort turnover and migration flows on labour force dynamics at the sub-national level in Italy. Using municipal-level data from 2018 to 2019, changes in the active population are decomposed into three... more
Note: This is a sample of 13 records. The complete dataset contains 5000 records covering all 27 EU member states. Full dataset available via Zenodo DOI .
Romania's absorption of EU structural and investment funds from 2015 to 2025 demonstrates a trajectory of gradual administrative maturation constrained by persistent governance rigidities. Despite measurable improvements in contracting... more
Rolnictwo, obok migracji, codzienności i pamięci, stanowi jeden z kluczowych obszarów odzwierciedlających historyczne i współczesne relacje polsko-niemieckie. Przez wieki granica między Polską a Niemcami była nie tylko linią podziału, ale... more
Over the past decade, European regions have confronted a succession of major shocks, including the global financial crisis, the COVID-19 pandemic, and Russia's aggression against Ukraine. These events, combining sudden disruptions with... more
Science, technology, and innovation policy-making laboratories, by providing policymakers with educational, research, and consulting services, before the introduction of policy recommendations to the regulatory and legal structures, make... more
Κατά την διάρκεια της τελευταίας δεκαετίας έχει εκδηλωθεί υψηλό ενδιαφέρον για επενδύσεις στον τομέα των Ανανεώσιμων Πηγών Ενέργειας τόσο στην Ελληνική επικράτεια όσο και στην υπόλοιπη Ευρώπη. Βασικοί στόχοι της παρούσας εργασίας... more
Αντικείμενο της παρούσας διατριβής αποτελεί η μελέτη και αξιολόγηση των προγραμμάτων χρηματοδότησης έργων έρευνας και τεχνολογίας με χρήση του πολυκριτηριακού μαθηματικού προγραμματισμού. Στο πλαίσιο της διατριβής αποτυπώνονται τα βασικά... more
Development of inland water transport is one of the elements of the European cohesion policy. For Ukraine, the experience in implementing territorial development projects and programs aimed at forming a unified integrated transport system... more
The article is devoted to analyzing the tools and methodological approaches used to assess the impact of territorial cohesion policy on reducing interregional disparities across regions within EU countries. A content analysis of... more
Hand-rearing protocols for porcupines are rarely described in the peer-reviewed literature, despite frequent rescue admissions of orphaned juveniles. This case report documents the captive hand-rearing of two orphaned Indian crested... more
The intent of this paper is to provide empirical evidence about associations between structural fund allocation in the Czech Republic's micro-regions for the programming period 2007 to 2013, and intrastate regional disparities by... more
The primary purpose of this article is to evaluate the economic predictions of the ESO reform in Slovakia based on public expenditure analysis. We focus on the identification of the current expenses of district offices as bodies of local... more
Celem projektuw którym uczestniczą także zespoły eksperckie z Bułgarii, Czech, Estonii, Słowacji, Słowenii i Węgier, przygotowujące własne raporty krajo wejest ocena zdolności poszczególnych krajów kandydackich (w naszym przy padku... more
La presente analisi è estratta dagli studi prodotti durante il percorso universitario, laurea e Master europeo di II livello sulla rigenerazione urbana svolto a Parma, con relatore il prof. Paolo Ventura. Il quadro di conoscenza [capitolo... more
The article discusses the latest proposal for reform of the European Union treaties, which was included in the European Parliament resolution of November 2023. However, what constitutes the basis of the narrative are various motives,... more
The Minority SafePack Initiative (MSPI), launched in 2012 and legally concluded in 2025, stands as one of the most significant exercises of participatory democracy in the European Union. As a European Citizens' Initiative (ECI), it... more
Les mouvements religieux ont toujours occupé une place centrale dans l’histoire des sociétés humaines. Ils répondent à des besoins fondamentaux : donner un sens à l’existence, structurer les valeurs, proposer des repères face à... more