Functionalism is a theory of international relations that arose principally from the experience of European integration. Rather than the self-interest that realists see as a motivating factor, functionalists focus on common interests shared by states. Integration develops its own internal dynamic: as states integrate in limited functional or technical areas, they increasingly find that momentum for further rounds of integration in related areas. This "invisible hand" of integration phenomenon is termed "spill-over." Although integration can be resisted, it becomes harder to stop integration's reach as it progresses.^[1] European integration is the process of political and economic (and in some cases social and cultural) integration of European states into a tighter bloc. ... Self-interest can refer to these articles: Egoism Selfishness Ethical egoism Psychological egoism Individualism Objectivist ethics Hedonism Happiness Epicureanism Utilitarianism This is a disambiguation page — a navigational aid which lists pages that might otherwise share the same title. ... Integration may be any of the following: In the most general sense, integration may be any bringing together of things: the integration of two or more economies, cultures, religions (usually called syncretism), etc. ... The Invisible hand is a metaphor created by Adam Smith to illustrate the principle of enlightened self interest. ...

William Wallace describes integration as:

the creation and maintenance of intense and diversified patterns of interaction among previously autonomous units. These patterns may be partly economic in character, partly social, partly political: definitions of political integration all imply accompanying high levels of economic and social interaction.^[2]

Integration is achieved through two kinds of spillover: functional and political. Spillover occurs when "…imbalances created by the functional interdependence or inherent linkages of tasks can press political actors to redefine their common tasks"^[3]. Functional spillover is the interconnection of various economic sectors or issue-areas, and the integration in one policy-area spilling over into others. Political spillover is the tendency of supranational organizations to generate a self-reinforcing process of institution-building. The institutions of the EU, in particular the Commission, provide leadership and an arena for an emerging transnational society^[4]. Supranationalism is a method of decision-making in international organizations, where power is held by independent appointed officials or by representatives elected by the legislatures or people of the member states. ... In law a commission is a patent which allows a person to take possession of a state office and carry out official acts and duties. ...

John McCormick compares functionalism's fundamental principles with realism's thus:

Neo-functionalism

Main articles: Neofunctionalism, and [[]], and [[]], and [[]], and [[]]

Neofunctionalism is a theory of regional integration, building on the work of David Mitrany. One of its protagonists was Ernst B. Haas, a US-political scientist. Jean Monnet's approach to European integration, which aimed at integrating individual sectors in hopes of achieving spill-over effects to further the process of integration, is said to have followed the neofunctional school's tack. Unlike previous theories of integration, neofunctionalism was non-normative and tried to describe and explain the process of regional integration based on empirical data. Integration was regarded as an inevitable process, rather than a desirable state of affairs that could be introduced by the political or technocratic elites of the involved states' societies. Its strength however was also its weakness: While it understood that regional integration is only feasible as an incremental process, its conception of integration as a linear process made the explanation of setbacks impossible. Neofunctionalism is a theory of regional integration, building on the work of David Mitrany. ...

References

• Caporaso, J. 1998: "Regional integration theory: understanding our past and anticipating our future." Journal of European Public Policy, 5(1):1-16.
• Keohane, R.O. and S. Hoffmann 1991: The New European Community: Decision-making and Institutional Change. Boulder, Colorado: Westview Press.
• McCormick, John. The European Union. Westview Press. January 1, 1999. ISBN 081339032X
• Wallace, William (ed.) 1990: The Dynamics of European Integration. London: Pinter Publishers.

Robert Keohane is a famous international relations theorist and researcher. ... January 1 is the first day of the calendar year in both the Julian and Gregorian calendars. ... 1999 (MCMXCIX) was a common year starting on Friday, and was designated the International Year of Older Persons by the United Nations. ...

Notes

1. ^  McCormick pp. 13.
2. ^  Wallace pp. 9.
3. ^  Joseph Nye, cited in Keohane and Hoffmann pp. 285
4. ^  Caporaso pp. 9
5. ^  McCormick pp. 14.

Joseph Nye (born 1937) is the founder, along with Robert Keohane, of the international relations theory neoliberalism (international relations) developed in their 1977 book Power and Interdependence. ...

See also

• Intergovernmentalism
• International relations theory