Prof. Dr. Oliver Treib

Oliver Treib is Professor of Comparative Policy Analysis and Research Methods at the University of Münster. He received his Master’s degree and PhD in political science from the University of Cologne. His professional career began at the Max Planck Institute for the Study of Societies in Cologne, where he worked as a doctoral and post-doctoral researcher. Prior to joining the University of Münster, he worked at the Institute for Advanced Studies in Vienna, first as an Assistant Professor, then as Head of the Department of Political Science, and at the University of Salzburg, where he spent a year as tenure-track Assistant Professor. His research revolves around the logic of policy-making and the transformation of political conflict structures in the European multi-level system. His publications include "Complying with Europe: EU Harmonisation and Soft Law in the Member States" (Cambridge University Press 2005, with G. Falkner, M. Hartlapp and S. Leiber), "Die EU und ihre Bürger" (UTB 2011, with G. Tiemann and A. Wimmel), "Die Beobachtung als Methode in der Politikwissenschaft" (UTB 2020, with B. Schlipphak and V. Gehrau) and articles in journals such as European Journal of Political Research, European Union Politics, Journal of European Public Policy and West European Politics.
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Die Beobachtung als Methode in der Politikwissenschaft. München: UTB/UVK 2020 (with B. Schlipphak and V. Gehrau). [Information online] [Research Gate]
Die EU und ihre Bürger. Wien: UTB/Facultas WUV 2011 (with G. Tiemann and A. Wimmel). [Information online] [Research Gate]
Compliance in the Enlarged European Union: Living Rights or Dead Letters? Aldershot: Ashgate 2008 (with G. Falkner and E. Holzleithner). [Information online] [Research Gate]
Complying with Europe: EU Harmonisation and Soft Law in the Member States. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press 2005 (with G. Falkner, M. Hartlapp and S. Leiber). [Information online] [Research Gate]
Die Bedeutung der nationalen Parteipolitik für die Umsetzung europäischer Sozialrichtlinien. Frankfurt/M.: Campus 2004. [Information online] [Full text online] [Research Gate]
Venturing Beyond the Vote: Routes to Feeling Represented through Unelected Representation. British Journal of Political Science, 2025. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1017/S0007123425000080 (with A. Vik, P. de Wilde und L. Aarøe). ***
What Kind of EU Do Citizens Want? Reform Preferences and the Conflict over Europe. Journal of European Public Policy 30(9), 2023, 1738-1761. DOI: 10.1080/13501763.2022.2102670 (with C. Schäfer and B. Schlipphak). ***
When Are Governmental Blaming Strategies Effective? How Blame, Source and Trust Effects Shape Citizens’ Acceptance of EU Sanctions Against Democratic Backsliding. Journal of European Public Policy 30(9), 2023, 1715-1737. DOI: 10.1080/13501763.2022.2102671 (with B. Schlipphak, P. Meiners, and C. Schäfer). ***
The Virus of Polarization: Online Debates About Covid-19 in Germany. Political Research Exchange 5(1), 2023. DOI: 10.1080/2474736X.2022.2150087 (with F. Schmid and F. Eckardt). ***
Regional Peripheralization as Contextual Source of Populist Attitudes in Germany and Czech Republic. Political Studies, 2022. DOI: 10.1177/00323217221091981 (with T. Dvořák and J. Zouhar). ***
Exploring Mainstream Euroscepticism: Similarities and Differences Between Eurosceptic Claims of Centre-right and Radical Right Parties. Research & Politics 7(3), 2020, DOI: 10.1177/2053168020953301. [Research Gate] ***
Which Way Forward in Measuring the Quality of Life? A Critical Analysis of Sustainability and Well-Being Indicator Sets. Global Environmental Politics 20(2), 2020, 12-36. DOI: 10.1162/glep_a_00554 (with D. Fuchs, B. Schlipphak, L. A. N. Long und M. Lederer). [Research Gate] ***
Euroscepticism is here to stay: what cleavage theory can teach us about the 2019 European Parliament elections. Journal of European Public Policy 28(2), 2020, DOI: 10.1080/13501763.2020.1737881. [Research Gate] ***
The Impact of the European Youth Guarantee on Active Labour Market Policies: A Convergence Analysis. International Journal of Social Welfare 28(4), 2019, 358-368, DOI: 10.111./ijsw.12375 (with J. Tosun and F. De Franscesco). [Research Gate] ***
Who Gets Committee Leadership Positions in the European Parliament? Evidence from the 2014 Selection Process. European Union Politics 20(2), 2019, 219-238, DOI: 10.1177/1465116518824029 (with B. Schlipphak). [Research Gate] ***
Legitimiert eingreifen. Das Interventionsparadox der EU und wie man es vermeiden könnte. Aus Politik und Zeitgeschichte 69(4-5), 2019, 26-31 (with B. Schlipphak). [Information online] [Research Gate]
Efficiency or Compensation? Effects of the Global Economic Crisis on Policy Discourse in EU Social Policy. Global Social Policy 18(4), 2018, 304-322. DOI: 10.1177/1468018118790957 (with M. van Gerven and I. Lammers). [Research Gate] ***
Playing the Blame Game on Brussels: The Domestic Political Effects of EU Interventions against Democratic Backsliding. Journal of European Public Policy 24(3), 2017, 352-365. DOI: 10.1080/13501763.2016.1229359 (with B. Schlipphak). [Research Gate] ***
The Voter Says No, but Nobody Listens: Causes and Consequences of the Eurosceptic Vote in the 2014 European Elections. Journal of European Public Policy 21(10), 2014, 1541-1554. DOI: 10.1080/13501763.2014.941534. [ResearchGate] ***
Implementing and Complying with EU Governance Outputs. Living Reviews in European Governance 9(1), 2014, http://europeangovernance-livingreviews.org/Articles/lreg-2014-1 (major update of 2008 Living Review). DOI: 10.12942/lreg-2014-1. [Research Gate] ***
Der parteipolitische Kampf um die EU-Sozialagenda: Deutschland und die europäische Antidiskriminierungspolitik. Der Bürger im Staat 60(3), 2010, 314-320. [Complete issue online] [Research Gate]
Party Politics, National Interests and Government–Opposition Dynamics: Cleavage Structures in the Convention Negotiations on EU Social Policy. European Union Politics 11(1), 2010, 119-142. DOI: 10.1177/1465116509353690. [Research Gate] ***
Europawahl 2009: Warum es sich lohnt, seine Stimme abzugeben. WSI Mitteilungen 62(6), 2009, 286. [Full text online] [Research Gate]
Implementing and Complying with EU Governance Outputs. Living Reviews in European Governance 3(5), 2008, http://europeangovernance-livingreviews.org/Articles/lreg-2008-5 (major update of 2006 Living Review). DOI: 10.12942/lreg-2008-5. [Research Gate] ***
Zwischen Parteipolitik und nationalen Interessen: Regierungs-Oppositions-Gegensätze im EU-Verfassungskonvent. Österreichische Zeitschrift für Politikwissenschaft 37(3), 2008, 337-356. [Full text online] [Research Gate] ***
Europäisches Recht und nationale Parteipolitik: Warum Deutschland zu den Schlusslichtern bei der Umsetzung der EU-Antirassismusrichtlinie gehörte. Sozialer Fortschritt 57(7-8), 2008, 202-208. DOI: 10.3790/sfo.57.7-8.202. [Research Gate] ***
Three Worlds of Compliance or Four? The EU-15 Compared to New Member States. Journal of Common Market Studies 46(2), 2008, 293-313 (with G. Falkner). DOI: 10.1111/j.1468-5965.2007.00777.x. [Research Gate] ***
In Search of the Worlds of Compliance: A Brief Reply. Journal of European Public Policy 14(6), 2007, 954-958 (with G. Falkner, M. Hartlapp and S. Leiber). [Research Gate] ***
Worlds of Compliance: Why Leading Approaches to European Union Implementation Are Only ‘Sometimes-True Theories’. European Journal of Political Research 64(3), 2007, 395-416 (with G. Falkner and M. Hartlapp). DOI: 10.1111/j.1475-6765.2007.00703.x. [Research Gate] ***
Modes of Governance: Towards a Conceptual Clarification. Journal of European Public Policy 14(1), 2007, 1-20 (with H. Bähr and G. Falkner). DOI: 10.1080/135017606061071406. [Research Gate] ***
Les conflits politiques en Allemagne autour de la transposition de la directive européenne contre le racisme. Critique internationale No. 33, 2006, 27-38. DOI: 10.3917/crii.033.0027. [Research Gate] ***
Implementing and Complying with EU Governance Outputs. Living Reviews in European Governance 1(1), 2006, http://europeangovernance-livingreviews.org/Articles/lreg-2006-1. [Research Gate] ***
Was bewirken EU-Richtlinien in der Sozialpolitik? – Ein Ost-West-Vergleich. WSI Mitteilungen 59(10), 2006, 547-552 (with S. Leiber). [Full text online] [Research Gate]
Europäische Sozialpolitik in der nationalen Praxis. Zeitschrift für Sozialreform 51(2), 2005, 139-163 (with G. Falkner). [Research Gate] ***
Non-Compliance with EU Directives in the Member States: Opposition through the Backdoor? West European Politics 27(3), 2004, 452-473 (with G. Falkner, M. Hartlapp and S. Leiber). DOI: 10.1080/0140238042000228095. [Research Gate] ***
Die Umsetzung von EU-Richtlinien im Zeichen der Parteipolitik: Eine akteurzentrierte Antwort auf die Misfit-These. Politische Vierteljahresschrift 44(4), 2003, 506-528. DOI: 10.1007/s11615-003-0096-y. [Research Gate] ***
Methods of Public Policy Research in Europe. In: L. Verzichelli/C. Wagemann (eds.), The Application of Political Science Methods in Europe: A Multifaceted Dilemma. Cham: Springer Nature 2025, 81–98. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-031-93841-2_5 (with S. Blum).
Anti-pluralist Reactions to an Anti-pluralist Party: The 'Alternative for Germany' and the German Party System. In: Ben Crum/Alvaro Oleart (eds.), Populist Parties and Democratic Resilience: A Cross-National Analysis of Populist Parties' Impact on Democratic Pluralism in Europe. London: Routledge, 2023, 58–79 (with C. Schäfer and B. Schlipphak).
Theoretical Perspectives on Improving Policy Implementation in the EU. In: Paolo R. Graziano/Jale Tosun (eds.), Elgar Encyclopedia of European Union Public Policy. Cheltenham: Edward Elgar, 472–481 (with E. Mastenbroek and E. Versluis).
Akteurzentrierter Institutionalismus. In: Georg Wenzelburger/Reimut Zohlnhöfer (eds.), Handbuch Policy-Forschung, second edition, Wiesbaden: Springer Fachmedien, 2022. DOI: 10.1007/978-3-658-05678-0_10-1.
Euroskeptizismus und Zentralisierung: Die Europawahl 2019 und das Zentrum-Peripherie-Cleavage in Europa, in: Michael Kaeding/Manuel Müller/Julia Schmälter (eds.), Die Europawahl 2019. Ringen um die Zukunft Europas. Wiesbaden: Springer VS 2020, 131–142. [Information online] [Research Gate]
The 2019 EP Election in Germany: Between Migration and the Climate Crisis, in: Sylvia Kritzinger/Carolina Plescia/Kolja Raube/James Wilhelm/Jan Wouters (eds.), Assessing the 2019 European Parliament Elections. Abingdon: Routledge 2020, 149–168 (with J. Partheymüller und B. Schlipphak). [Information online] [Research Gate]
Linking Policy Design and Implementation Styles, in: Michael Howlett/Ishani Mukherjee (eds.), Routledge Handbook of Policy Design. London: Routledge 2018, 316-330 (with J. Tosun). [Information online] [Research Gate]
Deutsche Parteien und die EU: Traditioneller Integrationskonsens trotz zunehmend euroskeptischer Bürger, in: Anjo G. Harryvan/André Krause/Hans Vollaard (eds.), Europa zwischen Hoffnung und Skepsis: Deutschland und die Niederlande über die europäische Integration seit 1990. Münster: Waxmann 2018, 67-93. [Information online] [Research Gate]
Wenn der Geist einmal aus der Flasche ist: Das Brexit-Referendum und die Politisierung der EU in Großbritannien, in: Lisa H. Anders/Henrik Scheller/Thomas Tuntschew (eds.), Parteien und die Politisierung der Europäischen Union. Wiesbaden: Springer VS 2018, 221-250. DOI: 10.1007/978-3-658-19283-9_8. [Research Gate]
Akteurzentrierter Institutionalismus, in: Georg Wenzelburger/Reimut Zohlnhöfer (eds.), Handbuch Policy-Forschung. Wiesbaden: Springer VS 2015, 277-303. DOI: 10.1007/978-3-658-01968-6_11. [Research Gate]
Die Europawahl in Großbritannien: gegen Brüssel und gegen das Establishment, in: Michael Kaeding/Niko Switek (eds.), Die Europawahl 2014: Spitzenkandidaten, Protestparteien, Nichtwähler. Wiesbaden: Springer VS 2015, 161-171. DOI: 10.1007/978-3-658-05738-1_14. [Research Gate]
Methodische Spezifika der Policy-Forschung, in: Klaus Schubert/Nils C. Bandelow (eds.), Lehrbuch der Politikfeldanalyse. 3. Aufl. München: De Gruyter Oldenbourg 2014, 211–230. [Information online] [Research Gate]
Party Patronage in Austria: From Reward to Control, in: Petr Kopecký/Peter Mair/Maria Spirova (eds.), Party Government and Party Patronage in European Democracies. Oxford: Oxford University Press 2012, 31-53. [Information online] [Research Gate]
Social Policy and Environmental Policy: Comparing Modes of Governance, in: Udo Diedrichs/ Wulf Reiners/Wolfgang Wessels (eds.), The Dynamics of Change in EU Governance. Cheltenham: Edward Elgar, 103-131 (with H. Bähr and G. Falkner). [Information online] [Research Gate]
Bargaining and Lobbying in EU Social Policy, in: David Coen/Jeremy J. Richardson (eds.), Lobbying the European Union: Institutions, Actors and Issues. Oxford: Oxford University Press 2009, 247-267 (with G. Falkner). [Research Gate]
Von Hierarchie zu Kooperation? Zur Entwicklung von Governance-Formen in zwei regulativen Politikfeldern der EU, in: Ingeborg Tömmel (ed.), Die Europäische Union: Governance und Policy-Making. PVS-Sonderheft 40. Wiesbaden: VS Verlag für Sozialwissenschaften 2008, 92-115 (with H. Bähr and G. Falkner). DOI: 10.1007/978-3-531-90795-6_4. [Research Gate]
Implementing Public Policy, in: Frank Fischer/Gerald J. Miller/Mara S. Sidney (eds.), Handbook of Public Policy Analysis: Theory, Politics, and Methods. Boca Raton, FL: CRC Press 2007, 89-107 (with H. Pülzl). [Research Gate]
Ustavni ugovor EU i budućnost države blagostanja u evropi, in: Drenka Vuković/Ana Čekerevac (eds.), Socijalna politika u procesu evropskih integracija. Belgrad: Čigoja štampa 2006, 30-51 (translation into Serbian of a text on the EU's Constitutional Treaty and its implications for the future of the welfare state in Europe).
Nationale Rechtsbefolgung und die Zukunft der europäischen Sozialpolitik, in: Heinrich Badura (ed.), Soziales Europa zwischen Nostalgie und Zukunftsorientierung. Waidhofen: Europäische Akademie für Lebensforschung, Integration und Zivilgesellschaft 2006, 189-198. [Research Gate]
The European Union and New Social Risks: The Need for a Differentiated Evaluation, in: Klaus Armingeon/Giuliano Bonoli (eds.), The Politics of Post-Industrial Welfare States. London: Routledge 2006, 248-263 (with G. Falkner). [Information online] [Research Gate]
Der EU-Verfassungsvertrag und die Zukunft des Wohlfahrtsstaates in Europa, in: Sonja Puntscher-Riekmann/Günter Herzig/Christian Dirninger (eds.), Europa Res Publica: Europäischer Konvent und Verfassungsgebung als Annäherung an eine europäische Republik? Wien: Böhlau 2006, 257-288. [Research Gate]
Europäische Sozialpolitik in der nationalen Praxis, in: Alexandra Baum-Ceisig/Anne Faber (eds.), Soziales Europa? Perspektiven des Wohlfahrtsstaates im Kontext von Europäisierung und Globalisierung. Festschrift für Klaus Busch. Wiesbaden: VS-Verlag für Sozialwissenschaften 2005, 220-238 (with G. Falkner). [Information online] [Research Gate]
Die Kooperation der Sozialpartner im Arbeitsrecht: Ein europäischer Weg?, in: Rainer Eising/Beate Kohler-Koch (eds.), Interessenpolitik in Europa. Baden-Baden: Nomos 2005, 341-362 (with G. Falkner, M. Hartlapp und S. Leiber). [Research Gate]
EG-Richtlinien als soziales Korrektiv im europäischen Mehrebenensystem? Regulative Entwicklung, Problemskizze und potentielle Wirkungsmuster, in: Adrienne Héritier/Fritz W. Scharpf/Michael Stolleis (eds.), European and International Regulation after the Nation State: Different Scopes and Multiple Levels. Baden-Baden: Nomos 2004, 115-138 (with G. Falkner, M. Hartlapp and S. Leiber). [Research Gate]
Die Europäische Union als Herausforderung für die Sozialpolitik der Mitgliedsländer, in: Sieglinde Rosenberger/Emmerich Tálos (eds.), Sozialstaat: Probleme, Herausforderungen, Perspektiven. Wien: Mandelbaum-Verlag 2003, 14-27 (with G. Falkner). [Full text online] [Research Gate]
"Interview zur Friedenspreisvergabe an Macron: „Er hat verstanden, dass Krieg durch Verhandlungen beendet werden muss". Westfälische Nachrichten, 5.3.2023, https://www.wn.de/muensterland/friedenspreis-emmanuel-macron-einschaetzung-politikwissenschaftler-treib-2716836 (Interview).
"Richtlinienkompetenz vs. Autorität: Wie es um Scholz‘ Macht steht: Interview with Deutschlandfunk Kultur, broadcast on 18.10.2022, https://deutschlandfunkkultur.de/richtlinienkompetenz-vs-autoritaet-wie-es-um-scholz-macht-steht-dlf-kultur-19adc350-100 (Interview).
"Steilvorlage für die AfD – eine politikwissenschaftliche Einordnung: Die Wahlerfolge der AfD und die Stärke der Linken verhindern althergebrachte politische Konstellationen". Op-ed for WWU-News, 7.2.2020, https://www.uni-muenster.de/news/view.php?cmdid=10822 (contribution with B. Schlipphak).
"Der Euro bleibt ein heikles Thema". Radio interview for WDR5 Politikum. Broadcast on 30 July 2019 (interview).
"Forderungen für Europa (5/6): Gemeinsame Streitkräfte bis 2030". Radio interview with Marco Poltronieri for a feature of WDR5 Morgenecho. Broadcast on 10 May 2019, https://www1.wdr.de/radio/wdr5/sendungen/morgenecho/serien/europawahl-118.html.
"Nicht immer ist mehr Europa die Antwort". WWU-Politologen diskutieren vor der Europawahl über Wählermobilisierung und die Bedeutung der EU (interview, with Andrea Szukala), in: wissen|leben 13(3), May 2019, S. 6, https://www.uni-muenster.de/imperia/md/content/wwu/muz/pdf-ausgaben/wl_alumni_gesamt_05_2019.pdf.
"Europa: Populisten in der EU als Feindbild präsent". Interview with Südwest Presse, 12.02.2019, https://www.swp.de/politik/inland/populisten-in-der-eu-als-feindbild-praesent-29740148.html.
"Ausgrenzung ist für AfD gefundenes Fressen". Radio interview for WDR5 Morgenecho on the AfD’s federal party conference 2018. Broadcast on 29 June 2018, https://www1.wdr.de/mediathek/audio/wdr5/wdr5-morgenecho-interview/audio-ausgrenzung-ist-fuer-afd-gefundenes-fressen-100.html.
Interview with Radio Q on the new EU Commission. Broadcast on 5 November 2014, https://soundcloud.com/radioq/das-komplette-interview-mit-oliver-treib.
Excluding the growing camp of Eurosceptics from the EU’s corridors of power could prove fatal in the long run. LSE EUROPP Blog, 4 August 2014, http://blogs.lse.ac.uk/europpblog/2014/08/04/excluding-the-growing-camp-of-eurosceptics-from-the-eus-corridors-of-power-could-prove-fatal-in-the-long-run (Guest commentary).
Ukip-Erfolg: Europa stehen ungemütliche Zeiten bevor. Die Zeit Online, 26.5.2014. http://www.zeit.de/politik/ausland/2014-05/ukip-grossbritannien-europawahl (Guest commentary).
Schwarz, Patrick (2014): Kommissionspräsident gesucht: Wer hat Angst vorm starken Mann? Handelsblatt Online, 21.3.2014. http://www.handelsblatt.com/9610558.html (Background discussion).
IfPol Front Office
Research Associate
Student Research Assistant
Vorlesung (Bachelor): Einführung in Public Governance
Lektürekurs (Bachelor): Aktuelle Literatur zur politischen Kultur in Deutschland
Methodenseminar (Master): Quantitative Methoden
Hauptseminar (Master): Democratic Backsliding in the EU
Kolloquium für Examenskandidat:innen
Vorlesung (Bachelor): Methoden II
Bachelor-Seminar (Bachelor): Die Politik der Rechtsbefolgung in der EU
Kolloquium für Examenskandidat:innen
Methodenseminar (Master): Quantitative Methoden (Kurs 1)
Methodenseminar (Master): Quantitative Methoden (Kurs 2)
Hauptseminar (Master): Democratic Backsliding in the EU
Hauptseminar (Master): The Transformation of Cleavage Structures in Europe
Kolloquium für Examenskandidat:innen
None (research semester)
None (research semester)
None (research semester)
None (research semester)