Executive Summary

The TTIP has been termed the trade agreement of the 21st century; it is without a doubt one of the most important and first negotiation of its kind to have taken place between the European Union (EU) and the United States (US). It indeed would change the way business is conducted on both side of the Atlantic and would open many Economic opportunities to both parties.

The EU and the US have a multitude of trade agreements with other countries according to the World Trade Organization (WTO) the US has 14 bilateral agreements with several countries (NAFTA with the US, Canada and Mexico, CAFTA which is an agreement done with various states in the Caribbean). The EU has 35 bilateral agreements.

We find that the TTIP is not …show more content…
1) Neo Liberal Institutionalism

The United States as well as the EU are major international actors. The organizations involved in the TTIP view it more or less as an arena for discussion where the objective is to influence each other. In this vision each party allows for the state representative to exchange representation but in the long term the aim is to create a certain sense of trust. The interaction is built on trust, preferences as well as interest.

2) Constructivism

Based on Audie Klotz book “Strategies for Research: In Constructivist International Relations”, I will also be using constructivist theoretical framework. Constructivism claims that history and sociology are contingent. The discussion of the TTIP, the socio-economic context framing it, will cover the decision making process in DC and within the EU states.
The 6 variables I will consider are:
I. Meaning (System)
II. Public Opinion
III. Political Regimes (Domestic)
IV. Bureaucratic Politics
V. Group Dynamics
VI. Leaders Personality …show more content…
Because the norms are socially constructed, it is extremely difficult to change them. This particular point is very important when discussing food production and standards within the European Union.

3) Rational Choice theory

Rational choice theory will also be used as a tool in this research. A pattern of behavior in society refers the choices made by individuals as they try to maximize their benefits and minimize their cost.
Rational choice theory makes 3 assumptions:

1) Actors can perceive the need to make a choice and can identify the different options
2) Actors can rank options in a complete and transitive order of preference
3) Actors chose the best available options.

We must take into account that Rationality is bounded. The available information and human capacity are limited and therefore actors are unable to rank their goals and options. This causes actors to often make a satisfying rather than optimal decision.

Method of