Abstract

The concept of Europeanization constitutes an attempt to analytically connect the main dimensions of a two-way process: EU institutionalization on one side, and domestic changes stemming from it, on the other. The wide literature on Europeanization testifies a wide interest in this perspective, but the debate on the definition of the concept is still going on and a shared analytical framework within the international scientific community is far from settled. The article aims at stressing that Europeanization is a loosely-coupled term subject to manifold definitions and lacking either a clear-cut analytical focus or a common method and research agenda. In the central section, these conceptual and analytical difficulties are examined and discussed with reference either to studies and researches concerning the Europeanization of agricultural policies or to other more traditional approaches and contributions based on already-rooted analytical categories (such as institutionalization, policy paradigm, policy legacy, ideas and core values, etc). Conclusions finally suggest a less ambiguous definition of Europeanization together with a more robust analytical framework.