Book Review : Erik Solem: The Nordic Council and Scandinavian Integration. Praeger Special Studies, New York 1977. 197 pp
| Author | Bengt Sundelius |
| Date | 01 November 1977 |
| DOI | 10.1177/001083677701200404 |
| Published date | 01 November 1977 |
| Subject Matter | Articles |
Book
Review
BENGT
SUNDELIUS
Erik
Solem:
The
Nordic
Council
and
Scandinavian
Integration.
Praeger
Special
Studies,
New
York
1977.
197
pp.
With
this
work
Erik
Solem
has
provided
English
speaking
readers
with
a
sorely
needed
informative
account
of
the
Nordic
cooperation
effort.
He
presents
a
brief
look
at
the
origins
and
functioning
of
the
Nordic
Council,
a
competent
review
of
the
main
policy
results
of
Nordic
cooperation,
a
discussion
of
the
views
of
various
elite
groups
on
Nordic
co-
operation,
and
gives
some
concluding
sugges-
tions
for
reforming
the
Nordic
cooperation
structures.
In
particular,
the
author
points
out
the
initiatory
role
of
the
Nordic
Council
and
shows
how
this
regional
parliamentary
body
has
promoted
cooperation
schemes
in
numerous
functional
areas.
Canadian
by
birth,
the
author
is
clearly
bent
on
not
merely
offering
a
descriptive
view
of
Nordic
cooperation
but
also
on
tying
this
case
of
regional
collaboration
to
the
prevalent
theories
of
regional
integration
(pp.
13,
161).
He
feels
that
the
generally
accepted
ideas
of
regional
integration
processes
could
be
further
refined
and
broadened
by
including
the
Nordic
experiences
in
these
models.
Similarly,
the
Nordic
case
could
best
be
understood
and
evaluated
in
terms
of
these
concepts
and
theories
of
regional
collaboration.
This
ambi-
tion
to
be
theoretically
relevant
is
particularly
welcome,
as
it
has
not
been
so
common
in
studies
on
Nordic
cooperation.
Unfortunately,
Erik
Solem’s
theoretical
effort
does
not
fulfil
one’s
expectations
in
this
regard.
The
main
weakness
with
the
theoretical
portion
of
the
book
is
that
the
author
has
concentrated
his
analysis
of
integration
theory
on
works
published
prior
to
1970.
The
theories
cited,
definitions
used,
and
propositions
dis-
cussed
are
no
longer
viewed
by
specialists
as
the
most
appropriate
for
their
analysis.
In
some
cases,
for
example
that
of
Ernst
Haas,
the
originators
have
substantially
revised
the
ideas
analysed
by
Solem
or
abandoned
the
study
of
integration
altogether,
for
example
Leon
Lindberg.
In
contrast,
more
recently
presented
propositions
about
integration
by
Ernst
Haas,
Joseph
Nye,
and
Donald
Puchala
have been
overlooked.
The
Lindberg-Schein-
gold
volume
on
regional
integration
from
1971
for
example
which
many
in
the
field
consider
to
be
the
’Bible’,
is
not
discussed.
The
controversial
essay
by
Ernst
Haas
in
which
he
questions
the
value
of
traditional
integration
studies
is
overlooked,2
as
is
the
essay
by
Joseph
Nye
and
Robert
Keohane,
where
they
outline
how
integration
theories
can
be
used
for
the
study
of
contemporary
international
relations.3
More
recent
studies
by
Donald
Puchala,
where
he
tries
to
move
beyond
the
traditional
models
of
integration,
are
not
considered
either .4
If
the
Nordic
experiences
had
been
investigated
in
the
context
of
these
more
advanced
theoret-
ical
works
the
value
of
the
study
would
have
been
greater.
The
author
offers
eleven
hypotheses
(p.
15)
which
he
intends
to
test
in
the
study.
In
the
concluding
chapter
six
of
these
are
discussed.
Two
are
rejected
(’Recommendations
dealing
with
non-controversial
issues
have
little
effect
on
political
integration’
and
’since
the
methods
of
the
Nordic
Council
are
informal
and
its
measures
are
not
binding,
the
impact
of
the
organization
on
political
integration
is
mini-
mal’,
p.
167)
and
four
are
confirmed,
at
least
in
part.
This
worthwhile
attempt
to
test
ex-
plicit
hypotheses
does
not
fully
succeed
as
the
investigative
stage
between
proposition
making
and
confirmation
is
weak.
Throughout
the
main
portion
of
the
empirical
part
of
the
study
the
author
neglects
to
openly
test
these
hypotheses
and
rather
offers
instead
a
more
traditional
description
of
the
cooperation
re-
sults.
Subsequently,
the
author
fails
in
the
final
chapter
to
convince
a
critical
reader
of
the
existence
of
sufficient
empirical
support
for
the
conclusions
drawn.
A
final
theoretical
weakness
is
the
author’s
preoccupation
with
the
idea
of
supranational-
ism
and
formal
rules
for
the
transfer
of
deci-
sion-making
authority.
No
doubt,
Erik
Solem
is
here
influenced
by
the
early
writings
of
Ernst
Haas
and
Amitai
Etzioni.
Due
to
this
bias
in
the
framework
used
the
author
over-
looks
many
of
the
crucial
informal
features
of
decision-making
and
policy
coordination.
Aspects
such
as
the
norms
for
consensus
forming,
the
strategies
available
for
coalition
building,
and
the
influence
of
regional
secre-
tariats,
are
significant
forces
of
integration
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