SCiDEV New Publication: Research on populist discourses in Albania and European Integration
This study explores the interrelation between populist discourses in Albania by mainstream political and media actors and the stagnation of the European integration process. Considering an array of scholarly reflections on populism, this study seeks to explain the potential effect of the stalled European integration process on the ‘degree of populism’ by political actors and media in Albania.
More concretely, this study explores different manifestations of populist discourses surrounding the opening of negotiations with the EU, solidarity after the earthquake, the COVID-19 pandemic, and vaccines, as well as the current state of the integration process of Albania after elections and in the aftermath of the June 2021 decision of EU.
The study is structured as follows: in addition to the introduction, a detailed methodology section presents the research design, process, and methods used by considering both its limits and merits. The third section sets the research within a broader conceptual framework on populism and populist discourses. The fourth section contextualizes the research within the enlargement policy of the EU integration process of the Western Balkans (WBs) and focuses more on the case of Albania, setting the ground for the analysis section. In the last section, qualitative data is presented and examined in line with the conceptual framework of the research and in the Albanian context. Finally, the last section presents conclusions, implications, and future areas of research.
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