Managing ECFA’s ideational transformative power in cross-Strait relations : an exploration using the functionalist model of integration and two-level game theory

This thesis utilizes Robert Putnam’s two-level game theory to shed light on why, despite steady improvement of low political interactions between China and Taiwan, the functionalist spillover into cross-Strait high politics has yet to occur. In this context, this thesis examines how the recently signed Economic Cooperation Framework Agreement (ECFA) can be managed to initiate an ideational (attitudinal) shift within the Taiwanese population towards cross-Strait integration. The thesis demonstrates that ECFA’s ideational transformative power is premised on its capacity to generate concrete benefits for the population and the extent to which these benefits fulfill the expectations that the population has come to hold towards ECFA. It also shows the importance of effective communication from Taiwanese elites to the Taiwanese population in building reasonable expectations about ECFA.Arts, Faculty ofPolitical Science, Department ofGraduat