Civil society and intergovernmental organizations: Turkish domestic organizations exercising influence via the European Union

Although substantial research has been devoted to explaining the relations between intergovernmental organizations (IGOs) and states, there is a dearth of research on the interactions between domestic actors (such as civil society organizations) and IGOs. Building on a theoretical framework that both nuances the domestic and integrates the domestic and international spheres, this dissertation posits that domestic civil society organizations (CSOs) use IGOs to alter their state's preferences in favor of their own positions. This study examines why and how CSOs appeal to IGOs, and what the outcomes of these appeals are.; The general hypothesis examined is that increased liberalization of the domestic environment, higher levels of material and network resources that the CSO enjoys, and higher levels of issue salience increase the likelihood of CSOs' appealing to IGOs. Empirically, I examine the Turkish civil society and its interactions with the European Union (EU) over time. Turkey is one of the four candidates for EU membership; its evolution of democracy over time permits an examination of the effects of regime change on civil society actors and their relations with the IGOs. Employing a structured, focused comparison of three different interests (employers, employees, and NGOs), the dissertation investigates eight different civil society organizations and the ways that they each appeal to the EU since Turkey's EU membership application in 1959. In-depth interviews of CSO officials and analysis of historical and contemporary CSO and government documents provide the data for this study.; This research indicates that the level of issue salience is the most important determinant of CSO appeal to IGOs. Contrary to the transnationalist literature on NGOs that emphasize the importance of the domestic environment, I find that the issue-salience is a more influential determinant of Turkish NGO behavior. Further, I find that some organizations (TURK-IS) appeal to the EU by criticizing its policies and some NGOs (WWHR) prefer not to appeal to the EU.; The study makes a contribution to the comparative literature by focusing on Turkey, a second-wave democracy between Europe and Middle East. An examination of its civil society, heretofore understudied, can thus be part of comparative studies on both regions.