A Hypergraph Analysis of the European Commission Lobby Network

A Hypergraph Analysis of the European Commission Lobby Network | Research Square window.SnipcartSettings = { analytics: { enabled: false } }; (function() { var accessVector = localStorage.getItem('access_vector') || ''; window.dataLayer = window.dataLayer || []; if (accessVector) { window.dataLayer.push({ user: { profile: { profileInfo: { snid: accessVector } } } }); } })(); (function(w,d,s,l,i){w[l]=w[l]||[];w[l].push({'gtm.start':new Date().getTime(),event:'gtm.js'});var f=d.getElementsByTagName(s)[0],j=d.createElement(s),dl=l!='dataLayer'?'&l='+l:'';j.async=true;j.src='https://www.googletagmanager.com/gtm.js?id='+i+dl;f.parentNode.insertBefore(j,f);})(window,document,'script','dataLayer','GTM-K279D39R'); Browse Preprints In Review Journals COVID-19 Preprints AJE Video Bytes Research Tools Research Promotion AJE Professional Editing AJE Rubriq About Preprint Platform In Review Editorial Policies Our Team Advisory Board Help Center Sign In Submit a Preprint Cite Share Download PDF Article A Hypergraph Analysis of the European Commission Lobby Network Amina Azaiez, Antoine Mandel This is a preprint; it has not been peer reviewed by a journal. https://doi.org/ 10.21203/rs.3.rs-6130857/v1 This work is licensed under a CC BY 4.0 License Status: Posted Version 1 posted You are reading this latest preprint version Abstract We use transparency data published by the European Commission (EC) to perform a quantitative analysis of the structure and dynamics of stakeholder consultation in EU policy-making process. We analyze the dataset through the prism of network theory by constructing a hypergraph whose nodes are EC officials and stakeholders, and hyperedges connect entities that participate in the same meetings. Our analysis highlights the presence of a hierarchical core-periphery structure, with a few well-connected entities that occupy the center of the network and enjoy a stable integration in the EC policy-making process. Examination of the core composition reveals that companies and trade associations maintain closer relationships with the EC. A regression analysis shows that lobbying efforts and company size are significant predictors of company centrality, independent of other objective characteristics. Our findings provide quantitative evidence supporting the perception of lobbying as a tool dominated by well-connected actors, while also revealing heterogeneous lobbying strategies across stakeholder groups. Scientific community and society/Social sciences/Politics Scientific community and society/Social sciences/Sociology Physical sciences/Mathematics and computing/Computational science Full Text Additional Declarations There is NO Competing Interest. Cite Share Download PDF Status: Posted Version 1 posted You are reading this latest preprint version Research Square lets you share your work early, gain feedback from the community, and start making changes to your manuscript prior to peer review in a journal. As a division of Research Square Company, we’re committed to making research communication faster, fairer, and more useful. We do this by developing innovative software and high quality services for the global research community. Our growing team is made up of researchers and industry professionals working together to solve the most critical problems facing scientific publishing. Also discoverable on Platform About Our Team In Review Editorial Policies Advisory Board Help Center Resources Author Services Accessibility API Access RSS feed Manage Cookie Preferences © Research Square 2026 | ISSN 2693-5015 (online) Privacy Policy Terms of Service Do Not Sell My Personal Information {"props":{"pageProps":{"initialData":{"identity":"rs-6130857","acceptedTermsAndConditions":true,"allowDirectSubmit":true,"archivedVersions":[],"articleType":"Article","associatedPublications":[],"authors":[{"id":425111539,"identity":"b79bf115-5680-4222-9d77-4e2963d9c0e5","order_by":0,"name":"Amina Azaiez","email":"data:image/png;base64,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","orcid":"https://orcid.org/0009-0008-9438-2527","institution":"Paris 1 Panthéon Sorbonne University","correspondingAuthor":true,"prefix":"","firstName":"Amina","middleName":"","lastName":"Azaiez","suffix":""},{"id":425111540,"identity":"e393d983-3251-47e3-893e-c793eb764b34","order_by":1,"name":"Antoine Mandel","email":"","orcid":"https://orcid.org/0000-0001-7180-950X","institution":"Climate Finance Alpha","correspondingAuthor":false,"prefix":"","firstName":"Antoine","middleName":"","lastName":"Mandel","suffix":""}],"badges":[],"createdAt":"2025-02-28 18:35:29","currentVersionCode":1,"declarations":{"humanSubjects":false,"vertebrateSubjects":false,"conflictsOfInterestStatement":false,"humanSubjectEthicalGuidelines":false,"humanSubjectConsent":false,"humanSubjectClinicalTrial":false,"humanSubjectCaseReport":false,"vertebrateSubjectEthicalGuidelines":false},"doi":"10.21203/rs.3.rs-6130857/v1","doiUrl":"https://doi.org/10.21203/rs.3.rs-6130857/v1","draftVersion":[],"editorialEvents":[],"editorialNote":"","failedWorkflow":false,"files":[{"id":78209214,"identity":"94260e1d-37a7-467f-ab51-dde8ce7bf9a7","added_by":"auto","created_at":"2025-03-11 03:19:26","extension":"pdf","order_by":1,"title":"","display":"","copyAsset":false,"role":"manuscript-pdf","size":9410237,"visible":true,"origin":"","legend":"Article File","description":"","filename":"manuscript.pdf","url":"https://assets-eu.researchsquare.com/files/rs-6130857/v1_covered_2dc893a0-fda0-49bb-854e-62b63fdeb941.pdf"}],"financialInterests":"There is \u003cb\u003eNO\u003c/b\u003e Competing Interest.","formattedTitle":"A Hypergraph Analysis of the European Commission Lobby Network","fulltext":[],"fulltextSource":"","fullText":"","funders":[],"hasAdminPriorityOnWorkflow":false,"hasManuscriptDocX":false,"hasOptedInToPreprint":true,"hasPassedJournalQc":"","hasAnyPriority":true,"hideJournal":true,"highlight":"","institution":"","isAcceptedByJournal":false,"isAuthorSuppliedPdf":true,"isDeskRejected":"","isHiddenFromSearch":false,"isInQc":false,"isInWorkflow":true,"isPdf":true,"isPdfUpToDate":true,"isWithdrawnOrRetracted":false,"journal":{"display":true,"email":"[email protected]","identity":"researchsquare","isNatureJournal":false,"hasQc":true,"allowDirectSubmit":true,"externalIdentity":"","sideBox":"","snPcode":"","submissionUrl":"/submission","title":"Research Square","twitterHandle":"researchsquare","acdcEnabled":true,"dfaEnabled":false,"editorialSystem":"","reportingPortfolio":"","inReviewEnabled":false,"inReviewRevisionsEnabled":true},"keywords":"","lastPublishedDoi":"10.21203/rs.3.rs-6130857/v1","lastPublishedDoiUrl":"https://doi.org/10.21203/rs.3.rs-6130857/v1","license":{"name":"CC BY 4.0","url":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/"},"manuscriptAbstract":"We use transparency data published by the European Commission (EC) to perform a quantitative analysis of the structure and dynamics of stakeholder consultation in EU policy-making process. 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