The Europeanization process, conceived of as a top-down or bottom-up process, explains only a fraction of the complex interactions carried out during the accession process. On one hand, extensive research has been conducted on the top-down rendering of Europeanization, which prioritizes the EU as an influential actor whom with the member and candidate states comply (see Ladrech, 1994; Olsen 1996; Börzel 1999; Knill and Lehmkuhl 1999; Risse et al. 2001). While on the other hand, a considerable amount of knowledge has been gained from a bottom-up appreciation of Europeanization that holds domestic actors and state interests as the fundamental force behind the Europeanization process (see Dyson, 2000; Börzel, 2002; and Howell, 2004). However, these singular versions of the Europeanization process do not fully appreciate the existence and importance of the complex interactions between domestic, EU, and transnational actors, whose ability to capitalize on windows of opportunities determines the effectiveness and level of compliance witnessed during the accession process. Recognizing the need for a more thorough rendering of the Europeanization process, and building upon observations from Croatia’s accession process this paper offers a multi-levelled conception of the Europeanization process that appreciates the top-down and bottom-up renderings of Europeanization while also exploring the “middle level” or horizontal interactions crucial to the success of the Europeanization process. In order to develop a more holistic explanatory framework this paper focuses on the following two questions: (1) Does the Europeanization process contain an exclusively top-down, bottom-up, or horizontal structure of influence or is it rather a more multi-levelled structure involving factors from all three levels of influence? (2) How does influence occur during the Europeanization process as the result of the complex interactions between domestic, transnational, and supranational actors?
