Mores and gains: The EU's influence on domestic violence policies among its new post-communist member states

SynopsisThe EU indirectly affects its member states' social policy, and there is a long-standing debate about its direct causal effect on member states regarding non-economic matters. This article analyzes how the governments of new post-communist Central and Eastern European EU members and candidates reacted to pressures from the European Commission, while acknowledging that the broader context of other global, regional, and domestic actors also affects the establishment of new laws and norms related to domestic violence. The EU's influence is controversial and manifold in post-communist Central and East Europe: while it has rhetorically endorsed gender equality, it has only recently and selectively started to pressure members and candidates into implementing changes and monitoring progress.