ABSTRACT
This chapter provides an outline of the theoretical and methodological approach taken throughout the book, unpacking the concept of agency in the cases of member states, the ECOWAS Commission, and external actors across four sections. The first section outlines the process tracing methodology of the book and a brief overview of key theoretical concepts, providing insight into data collection and analysis in the process. The ECOWAS Commission is conceptualized as a policy-making nexus, in which policy-making agency by member states, the Commission itself, as well as external actors is possible. Policy studies and the policy cycle are presented as the heuristic providing a unified approach to investigating the processes this book is interested in. The inductively generated causal mechanism that the book will substantiate is presented: (1) policy-making delegation from the member states to the Commission, (2) agency by the Commission, resulting in policy impulses and impetus, followed by (3) institutional support by external actors, resulting in impacts on policy making.
