Discourse analysis of the ideology of European statistical harmonization

Jerak Muravec, Nevena. (2017). Discourse analysis of the ideology of European statistical harmonization. PhD Thesis. Filozofski fakultet u Zagrebu, Department of Sociology.
(Međusveučilišni poslijediplomski doktorski studij sociologije) [mentor Afrić, Vjekoslav].

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Abstract

Dissertation you are reading aims to critically examine the interaction of supranational statistical institution of European Union (Commission) and the national statistical authority, i.e. Central Bureau of Statistics of the Republic of Croatia, in the context of European statistical harmonization, to discover (i) ideological characteristics of statistical harmonization, (ii) to explore asymmetric power relations and (iii) to examine the legitimacy and the authority of supranational statistical institution, and also (iv) to focus on the transformation of national institutions under the influence of European integration. I will represent how the discourse of harmonization constitutes in the practice of official statistics and how are the fundamental relations established between process of harmonization and the unequal distribution of power and domination in the context of the European Statistical System. The research that I conducted is based on an insight into the discrepancy between, on the one hand, officially proclaimed attitudes of Eurostat on the role of national statistical authorities in the European statistical harmonization and, on the other hand, practices which actually take place in the process of harmonization. Based on my insight into the practice of the Central Bureau of Statistics Croatia in the field of harmonization with European statistics (I am an employee of Information Systems Development Department in Central Bureau of Statistics Croatia for nine years this year), it is assumed that instead of the declared equal relations within the European statistical area there is uneven distribution of power between the actors of the European Statistical System. The aim of the research is to establish the relationship between the ideology of harmonization and the unequal distribution of power in the context of the European Statistical System, in order to raise awareness of everyday problems and injustices that exist in the European statistical world, which may likewise be transposed to any other system that includes national and supranational set of institutions. Given that ideology can reproduce power and dominance as a specific form of relationship between groups and social structures, and social practices further realize this ideology, I observe European statistical harmonization as an ideology that legitimizes the domination of supranational institution Eurostat over national statistical authority. That is to give a analytical contribution to the analyzes of extremely topical issue of the influence of supranational institutions to the 'nation-states' institutions in the European area. For specific contribution to the field of statistical harmonization, I analyzed the meaning of harmonization in the context of the European statistical system in order to understand the role and powers of members or actors of the European statistical system in the legitimacy of harmonization and also in the resistance towards harmonization.

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