Organization Theory and the Study of European Union Institutions: Lessons and Opportunities

Abstract

Most scholarship in modern Organisation Theory maintains a near-exclusive focus on privatesector settings. In contrast, this article argues that complex public-sector organisational systems – such as the European Union (EU) – can provide a very relevant laboratory to both fine-tune organisation theoretical propositions and test them empirically. I thereby first draw attention to the value-added of Organisation Theory for the study of EU institutions. Then, I turn to these institutions’ capacity to present a springboard for theoretical development in Organisation Theory, and bring forward a number of avenues for further research on the intersection of EU studies and Organisation Theory that can push forward both research fields.