Civil Service Systems in Western Europe: A Comparative Analysis

According to available geological information, Europe started off as a collection of smaller tectonic plates situated somewhere in the southern hemisphere. Slowly drifting northwards, forces of nature molded these smaller entities over time into the continent we know. On the basis of this historical geological information we are relatively safe to presume that Europe has, at least, a geographical identity. Comparing civil service systems during earlier phases in the Civil Service project, it was more or less implicitly taken for granted that Western Europe possesses more than a geographical distinctiveness from other regions. In Van der Meer (2012) extensive attention is paid to the historical institutional dimension of Western European civil service systems. The historical paragraphs highlighted many common features in the development of Western European civil service systems, without underestimating existing national particularities. Most Western European civil service systems show continuous reform efforts. Using the framework developed by Bekke, Perry and Toonen (1996) we will assess (the implications of) recent empirical research.