DISCURSIVE WILL FORMATION AND THE QUESTION OF LEGITIMACY IN EUROPEAN POLITICS

This article addresses the question of legitimacy, both in a general t heoretical perspective and more specifically in relation to policy mak ing in the European Union. It is argued that Jurgen Habermas' recent t heories of discursive will formation provide a useful framework for un derstanding the current problems of legitimacy in European policy maki ng. The main proposition is the central connection between communicati on and legitimacy, and it is argued that improving the communicative c haracter of policy making should be a central aspect of the democratiz ation efforts in Western Europe.