Re-examining the question of legitimacy in the European Union and in a member state: the case of Greece

Abstract

The concept of legitimacy is one that has been much discussed and analysed in the various disciplines of social science and it remains a highly contentious issue. The difficulty is not merely one of conceptual definition. Problems of legitimacy have also changed in our present era as political institutions increasingly transcend the national boundaries which once defined the field of the concept's application.

The present study proposes a way to re-examine the question of legitimacy. First, it offers a theoretical differentiation of the concept along five dimensions: those of civil society, democracy, the welfare state, the economic environment, and security and defence. Second, this theoretical argument is given practical substance in examination of the relation between institutions of the European Union and those of one of its mernber states, Greece. Although Greece is used as a testing ground for the framework, and inevitably will entail some features unique to it, it is argued that major aspects of the study are valid for other member states as well. By investigating both theoretical and empirical aspects of legitimacy, this study offers a more refined understanding of issues which are increasingly pressing as this century draws to a close.