Statistical analysis of the long-run relationship between regional integration and convergence, the European Union and integration theories

Since the mid-twentieth century, the development of the world economy has been driven by integration processes in several dimensions. According to some integration theories, the intensive and free flow of goods, services, capital and labour creates conditions similar to those of domestic economic relations, ultimately leading to convergence. European Union (EU) policy makers are trying to increase convergence and reduce divergence within the framework of a predefined regional policy. The objective of this paper, on the other hand, is not to analyse the policy of reducing regional disparities, but to statistically examine the relationship between regional integration and convergence across EU Member States within the longest time frame allowed by the methodology used. In our research, we have used a novel indicator (ITLS and CEW) to measure each of these two variables.