Policy Entrepreneurship, Policy Opportunism, and EU Conditionality: The AKP and TÜSİAD Experience in Turkey

Abstract

This article examines the relationship between European Union (EU) conditionality for membership and policy entrepreneurship in a candidate country. In Turkey, EU conditionality opened a window of opportunity for policy reform by lowering the political costs of controversial reforms. The study demonstrates that the Justice and Development Party (AKP) and the Turkish Industrialists' and Businessmen's Association (TÜSİAD) responded to a window of opportunity by advocating a series of reforms that represented a bold challenge to the traditionally reform‐averse and Euro‐skeptic political culture in Turkey. The study finds a difference in the duration of both actors' commitment to reforms. To explain this difference, we distinguish between policy entrepreneurs, who are actors with a long time horizon, and policy opportunists, who are actors with a short time horizon. The policy implication of this finding is that the European Commission's expectations of the AKP government to deliver the necessary reforms may be too optimistic.

Street-level policy entrepreneurship

“…Scholars tend to focus on how elite or elite-focused entrepreneurs identify problems and frame them to advance a policy agenda (e.g. Baker and Steuernagel 2009;Hwang and Powell 2005;Maguire et al 2004;Mintrom 1997;Pralle 2006;Ugur and Yankaya 2008). Some scholars maintain that entrepreneurs continue their advocacy through subsequent policy stages (Bardach 308 Public Management Review 1977;Mintrom 1997;Mintrom and Norman 2009).…”

The importance of policy entrepreneurs in developing countries: A systematic review and future research agenda

“…The fifth overall weakness in the scholarship is that several authors refer to “policy innovation” or the “innovative strategies” of policy entrepreneurs (see, for example, Hammond, , p. 133; Sun, , p. 136; Ugur & Yankaya, , p. 590; Zhu, , p. 191; Zhu & Zhang, , p. 862). We do not know how the “policy innovation,” “innovative strategy,” or “strategy” concepts are defined or measured, what makes policy entrepreneurs design and implement an “innovative” strategy or how they succeed in achieving their desired outcomes through employing it.…”

“…The majority of studies focus on individual (67%) and organizational (26%) policy entrepreneurs. There are articles that emphasize both individual and organizational entrepreneurs (Checkel, ; Ugur & Yankaya, ). For Kingdon (1995, p. 122), the “defining characteristic” of policy entrepreneurs “is their willingness to invest their resources—time, energy, reputation, and sometimes money—in the hope of a future return.” That return comes in the form of advancing their self‐interest or preferred ideas.…”

“…There is also a comparative analysis of two organizational actors in policy entrepreneurship. For example, building on a case study on Turkey, Ugur, and Yankaya (, p. 581) discuss how “the Justice and Development Party (AKP) and the Turkish Industrialists' and Businessmen's Association responded to a window of opportunity by advocating a series of reforms that represented a bold challenge to the traditionally reform‐averse and Eurosceptic political culture in Turkey.” For Ugur and Yankaya (, p. 581) “entrepreneurship skills should consist of resourcefulness not only with respect to agenda setting and issue brokering but also with respect to assessment of the risks and benefits associated with policy change. In our case, policy entrepreneurs detect the fall in the political cost of reform under EU conditionality.”…”

Open‐Ended Membership Prospect and Commitment Credibility: Explaining the Deadlock in EU–Turkey Accession Negotiations

“…The sudden change of direction was due to AKP's short time horizons and policy opportunism (Ugur and Yankaya, 2008). Following the victory in local elections of 2004, AKP leadership had decided to cater for the demands of its religious core support base.…”