Introducing regional self-governments in Central and Eastern Europe: Paths to success and failure

ABSTRACT Only over half of the new EU member states in Eastern Europe have introduced regional self-governments. This article explores the factors that have contributed to the success or failure of regionalization. The novel contribution of the article is as follows: first, if previous studies have mainly concentrated on larger countries that have successfully regionalized, the current study explores those factors that have contributed to the failure. Second, earlier studies have been too focused on EU conditionality, whereas the current study, in applying QCA (Qualitative Comparative Analysis), outlines the multiple causal pathways that have lead to successful regionalization (or failure). The results of the analysis reveal that there are two pathways for successful regionalization: (1) EU-induced regionalization, or (2) the semi-regionalist pathway. Pathways leading to failure also comprise two options: (3) ‘small-size-blocked’ pathway, or (4) the ‘lack of external pressure and tradition’ pathway.