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Source: Author’s suggestionsI argue that a successful process of regionalism is a conscious process, where actors involved are conscious. It is achieved by (1) awakening and differentiating from the other actor and building own identity, (2) reflexive acquisition of socialized ideas and perception leading to the change of perception and behaviours and (3) gone through affiliation to understanding and internalization. ASEM is a platform allowing that cognitive regionalism to happen thanks to bringing together diverse actors and by the binary concept of different regions.
2.3. Methodology
According to King, Keohane and Verba, qualitative research in social science should eventually ‘frame inference, causal or descriptive, quantitative or qualitative.88 This research offers several explanations that are closer to ta qualitative and descriptive inferences than causal one. Descriptive inference is ‘the process of understanding an unobserved phenomenon on the
88 Gary King, Robert Keohane, and Sidney Vebra, Designing Social Inquiry: Scientific Inference in Qualitative Methods (New Jersey: Princeton University Press, 1994). P. 34
Awakening • Learning (first contact)
• Differentiating
Reflecsive acquisition
• Building identity not only on contrast by understanding
• Change of perceptions and behaviours
Affiliation • Internalization
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basis of a set of observations’.89 To construct descriptive inferences, this research employs qualitative methods that include historical, inductive and interpretive approaches etc.
2.3.1. Methods applied
The majority of existing analyses on Asia-Europe inter-regionalism and ASEAN-EU bi-regionalism are based on historical and theoretical approaches. This study’s contribution is to offer a combined methodology of theoretical literature review and empirical research based on in-depth interviews with policy makers involved in the problem. It includes static and solid theoretical understanding and compare to the newest dynamic and policy developments of ASEM and ASEAN.
The aim of such synthesis is to bring a balanced view on the problem from comparing both approaches. Studies are made over official documents and statements of ASEM, ASEF and ASEAN, as well as academic publications related to the topic. Empirical research composes of active participation and active observation, in-depth interviews with ASEM and ASEAN policy-creators, ASEF program coordinators, and participants from ASEAN countries.
Explanation of methodology that the author employed can be illustrated as the following:
Graph 8: Methodology employed
89 Ibid. P. 55
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Source: Author’s suggestionThis study is based on first-hand and second-hand materials: analysis of official statements and documents, and academic research materials; and interviews with relevant policy-makers, academics, and ASEAN participants. It adopts a deductive analysis. The second-hand materials are consisted of literature review of the publications about Asia-Europe inter-regionalism and the development of ASEM mechanism.
Because majority of the existing resources heavily concentrates on the economic ties and political-security cooperation, this part is tackled in this study as secondary focus. Instead, it focuses on limited materials that talk about such issues as education, civil society participation or emerging democratization of the inter-regional process. Attention is paid to ASEAN
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development of Socio-Cultural Community, this including official ASEAN documents such as ASEAN Charter, the Blueprint for ASSC, ASEAN Intergovernmental Commission on Human Rights, and publication analysing the current trend of ASEAN shift. Those materials are relatively new, only after adopting the Charter in 2008; hence official press releases from ASEAN governments are also taken into consideration.
To analyse the process of Asia-Europe cultural cooperation and its influence on ASEAN’s internal change, a comparison of certain programs and policy documents over the years need to be done. It will analyse the ASEM Summits, ASEM Ministers’ Meetings.
The analysis official rhetoric analysis is to examine whether there occurs an inter-change through value and idea transmit. It will also retrieve the ASEF and ASEM’s archives materials and statistics in order to gain a full picture of ASEAN participation in the programs. The second part of analysis is the empirical study where the author analyses the in-depth interviews with decision-makers of ASEM and ASEAN she conducted throughout the period of four years.
Further elaboration of empirical data collection is in the following section.
2.3.2. Organization of empirical data
This dissertation was written in eight countries, over three continents, using resources of Taiwan (IIR NCCU), Singapore (ISEAS, ASEF, and Centre for European Studies Singapore), Malaysia (UM, Asia-Europe Institute and ISIS Malaysia), Indonesia (ASEAN Secretariat, LIPI), Vietnam (The Vietnamese Diplomatic Academy), Poland (Institute for Foreign Affairs), Belgium (UNU CRIS) and Australia (Australian National University, the College of Asia and the Pacific and the ANU Center for European Studies, Sydney University, Institute for Southeast Asian Studies).
Extensive field research trips were conducted over the period of five years of examining the complex issues related to ASEAN Community building, comparative approaches to regionalism, and ASEM developments.
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Due to limited financial support, I had to utilize my personal networks established through my experience working as diplomatic interpreter to access the government representatives and parliamentarians from countries of interests. I also made use of academic links that I have established through international conference participation. Thanks to participation and presentation at the prestigious international research community I gained valuable input to my research. I also managed to establish connection enabling me for further field research.
I have conducted initial research before settling the proposal. Apart from attending to a number of essential to her research international conferences and networks, she has conducted a few initial field research trips. The author utilized her professional experience of working for many years as diplomatic interpreter for the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of China to access the senior officials. Receiving delegations from Poland and from the EC, she had chances to interview the officials and diplomats working for the European Parliament.
Interviews with civil society, students and academics were conducted on various occasions of participatory observation to many ASEM and ASEF activities, research fellowships and international conferences over the course of five years. Field work trips were made to Singapore and Jakarta on repetitive basis. Interviews were conducted in English, Chinese, Vietnamese and Polish languages.
The theoretical analysis were contributed by arguably the most resourceful library and publishing house in Southeast Asia – the Institute of Southeast Asian Studies (ISEAS) in Singapore, which I visited in 2009. In 2011 I was based at the Asia-Europe Institute Resource Center, University of Malaya for a six-week research fellowship.
The visiting research fellowship at Australian National University offered me a great opportunity to work with world renowned experts in both Asian and European studies, being based at College of Asia Pacific and the Centre for European Studies. The rigid research environment at ANU directed me towards the empirical-oriented research.
The following list of selected interviewees who had agreed upon revealing their identities.
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As a part of participatory research I attended a number of programs organized by ASEF, cooperated with the Foundation in consultancy projects, as well as made a field trip to Asia-Europe Foundation in December 2009.
A number of interviews with ASEF staff, including:
- Director General Ambassador Dominique Girard in 2008 and 2010;
- Deputy Director General Ambassador Nguyen Quoc Khanh 2009,
- Key staff personas: Sabina Santosa – Director of Culture Exchange Department, Sol Iglesias – Director of Intellectual Exchange Department, Leonie NAGARAJAN Chief of