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Abstract. The evaluation criteria to measure the efficiency of a state's economic policy in terms of integration processes in the European Union were determined in the Europe 2020 Strategy endorsed by the European Council in June 2010. According to the Strategy, the European Union has committed to seek progress in the fields of employment, investment in R&D, climate change and energy, education, and poverty reduction. With a view to assessing the economic impact of the above commitments by the European Union vis-a-vis small European Union countries, this article provides an evaluation of the three objectives of the Europe 2020 Strategy – employment, education, and investment in R&D – and their impact on the economic growth in smaller countries of the European Union.This article concludes that many of the smaller European Union countries choose not to be ambitious enough in their national objectives of employment, education, and investment in R&D areas under the Europe 2020 Strategy and, during the 2011–2020 period, they show on average a 4.8% lower annual GDP growth than it could potentially be, i.e. they abandon far-reaching ambitious targets.Key words: economic policy, small European Union countries, Europe 2020 Strategy, employment, education, R&D

The development of eco-innovation activities performed by enterprises remains one of the key challenges of sustainable development. In modern economies, the implementation of innovative technological solutions should also take into account performing eco-innovation activities by enterprises. The aim of the research was to assess the involvement level of small and medium-sized enterprises in eco-innovation activities, regarding the implementation of actions for the effective management of resources and the implementation of sustainable products, against the background of their involvement in innovation activities related to the implementation of product innovations and business processes, as well as the assessment of spatial-temporal diversity and trends for changes in this regard. The spatial scope of the research addresses 27 European Union countries, and the time scope of the research covers the years 2013–2020. The methods of multivariate statistical analysis, with particular emphasis on classification methods, were used in the research. The main finding of the research is the division of the European Union countries into three types of classes, including the countries assessed as: (1) poor eco-innovators and moderate innovators; (2) moderate eco-innovators and poor innovators; and (3) leaders of eco-innovation and innovation. The conducted research shows that SMEs in the European Union countries are much less involved in eco-innovation activities than in innovation ones; the level of involvement in eco-innovation can be divergent from that of involvement in innovation. Moreover, the involvement in eco-innovation does not show an upward trend.

La práctica deportiva es una actividad que se recomienda para mantener y promocionar la salud y los buenos hábitos. Sin embargo puede acarrear un riesgo importante de lesiones. Este estudio presenta, mediante técnicas de análisis multivariante, la relación que existe entre la tipo de lesiones, lugares del cuerpo donde se producen, los deportes más populares; fútbol, baloncesto, voleibol, y gimnasia, edad y países donde se practica, tomando datos de cinco países de la Unión Europea. Si relacionamos estas características entre sí, podemos elaborar estrategias específicas al tipo de deporte y país donde se practica, con el objeto de mejorar la prevención y poder disminuir la cantidad de lesiones que se producen. ; Participation in sports is a health promotion activity and maintains good habits that entail an important injury risk. The present article is a study using Multivariatye Analysis, the relationship between type of injury, location of injury, the most popular sports; soccer, basketball, volleyball, gymnastics, county where it has been practiced and age, in five European Union countries. With these relationships, we can develop specific strategies to improve prevention and to reduce the injuries that occur.

The main purpose of the paper is to present proposals for the study of relationships between the dimensions of sustainable development and other areas of the EU countries' development: innovation and competitiveness both from theoretical and practical perspective. The first part presents the assumptions adopted by the authors, and the second the 2-stage research procedure. In the first stage, the relative taxonomic measure of development was calculated, while in the next one the correlation coefficients between considered dimensions and areas were calculated. According to the authors, in the studies of relationships between sustainable development and other considered areas, one should take into account all of the particular dimensions and areas creating the research phenomena.

The article purpose is to study digitalization of certain phases of Ukraine electoral processes, taking into account the European Union experience. The research design consists in a comparative analysis of electoral processes digitalization and its legislative provision. The article describes the legal field of EU electoral processes. The recommendations of the Council of Europe on e-voting standards are considered. The role of the administrator of the Ukraine State Voter Register is considered. The phases of electoral processes that require gradual digitalization are given. Scientific novelty of the study is to use a comparative approach in studying the electoral law of the EU and Ukraine. The research field is limited to the electoral law of the EU and Ukraine. The practical effects of the study make it possible to identify the advantages and disadvantages of digitalizing the phase of the electoral process. The scientific novelty of the study conducted in this article is to study the digital transformation restrictions at individual stages of electoral processes. The fundamental provisions in Ukrainian legislation on digitalization of electoral processes are determined. The article summarizes that the widespread means of electoral processes digitalization is the formation and updating of the voters registers and conducting their statistics. The author revealed that electoral processes digitalization has a fragmentary character in the EU countries, since the legal field in providing cyber security requires continuous improvement.

This paper proposes the application of taxonomic tools to study the differentiation of standard of living in the European Union countries. The aggregate distance between given countries is the basis for grouping member states in terms of their internal structure of the studied characteristics. The analysis is based on two chosen methods–the Ward's and k-means method. The study included 24 member states of the European Union in 1995-2010. Depending on the distance between the object, the countries were divided into two or four clusters. Similar configuration of each group obtained using both methods has led to the conclusion that these methods can be used both complementarily and separately. ; This paper proposes the application of taxonomic tools to study the differentiation of standard of living in the European Union countries. The aggregate distance between given countries is the basis for grouping member states in terms of their internal structure of the studied characteristics. The analysis is based on two chosen methods–the Ward's and k-means method. The study included 24 member states of the European Union in 1995-2010. Depending on the distance between the object, the countries were divided into two or four clusters. Similar configuration of each group obtained using both methods has led to the conclusion that these methods can be used both complementarily and separately.

This paper proposes the application of taxonomic tools to study the differentiation of standard of living in the European Union countries. The aggregate distance between given countries is the basis for grouping member states in terms of their internal structure of the studied characteristics. The analysis is based on two chosen methods–the Ward's and k-means method. The study included 24 member states of the European Union in 1995-2010. Depending on the distance between the object, the countries were divided into two or four clusters. Similar configuration of each group obtained using both methods has led to the conclusion that these methods can be used both complementarily and separately. ; This paper proposes the application of taxonomic tools to study the differentiation of standard of living in the European Union countries. The aggregate distance between given countries is the basis for grouping member states in terms of their internal structure of the studied characteristics. The analysis is based on two chosen methods–the Ward's and k-means method. The study included 24 member states of the European Union in 1995-2010. Depending on the distance between the object, the countries were divided into two or four clusters. Similar configuration of each group obtained using both methods has led to the conclusion that these methods can be used both complementarily and separately.

Multilingualism lies at the heart of educational policies adopted in most European Union countries. Knowledge of foreign languages now forms a significant part of the agenda concerning equality of educational opportunity. These policies are based on the premise that foreign languages help individuals in their professional and private life, combating poverty and social exclusion. In this paper, we present the education policies in relation to foreign languages in three European Union countries, Germany, Spain and Greece in order to examine whether they have been influenced by the equality agenda. We also present the results of a research study the aim of which was to investigate lower secondary education students' views and attitudes toward the teaching of foreign languages. Students seem to accept the official rhetoric regarding the beneficial outcomes of foreign languages. We conclude that multilingualism can contribute to the reduction of social class inequalities, as they can offer to all students, regardless of socioeconomic background, the opportunity to overcome obstacles and succeed in the education and employment field.

Multilingualism lies at the heart of educational policies adopted in most European Union countries. Knowledge of foreign languages now forms a significant part of the agenda concerning equality of educational opportunity. These policies are based on the premise that foreign languages help individuals in their professional and private life, combating poverty and social exclusion. In this paper, we present the education policies in relation to foreign languages in three European Union countries, Germany, Spain and Greece in order to examine whether they have been influenced by the equality agenda. We also present the results of a research study the aim of which was to investigate lower secondary education students' views and attitudes toward the teaching of foreign languages. Students seem to accept the official rhetoric regarding the beneficial outcomes of foreign languages. We conclude that multilingualism can contribute to the reduction of social class inequalities, as they can offer to all students, regardless of socioeconomic background, the opportunity to overcome obstacles and succeed in the education and employment field. Article visualizations:

AbstractEuropean Union (EU) governments are placing intensified stress on both the development of the circular economy (CE) and digital performance. In spite of the strategic and economic relevance of these two scientific fields, there is a lack of evidence regarding their mutual effects and implications. We tackle this gap by analysing how digitalization favours the path towards the CE across EU member states. Firstly, a cluster analysis was conducted to identify groups of EU countries depending on circular behaviour, resulting in the Generators, Recyclers, Achievers, Innovators classification. Subsequently, an analysis of variance was performed to examine how the groups were influenced by the different contexts of digitization. This has allowed us to detect that the digitalization variables of human capital, integration of digital technology and digital public services, are key drivers of variability in the CE. Moreover, we have found that countries with similar circular behaviour share similar levels of digitalization variables.

Wagner's Law is the first model of public expenditure in the history of public finance. It suggests that during the process of economic development the share of public spending in national income tends to expand (Wagner, 1883). Nevertheless, Peacock and Scott in 2000 wrote a paper entitled "The curious attraction of Wagner's law", explaining the reasons for why this (apparently) outworn theory is still studied by modern economists. On the other hand, Keynes (1936) considered public spending as an exogenous factor to be used as a policy instrument to influence growth. Moreover, Peacock and Wiseman (1961) presented the displacement effect, according to which during times of war tax rates are increased to generate more revenues, sustaining the increase in defense spending. While Peacock and Wiseman (1979) surveys the literature on public expenditure growth. This paper aims to analyze the relationship between public expenditure and aggregate income in EU countries, for the period 1980-2013, using panel data methodologies. After a brief introduction, a survey of the economic literature on this issue is discussed. Then, panel data tests on stationarity, cross-dependence, cointegration, and causality are shown. Finally, some notes on policy implications conclude the paper. ; http://www.econjournals.com/index.php/ijefi/article/view/1317/pdf

The common set of reporting standards allows for a unified business language when reporting on the financial status of businesses. Standards help to raise the quality of information and the comparability of financial statements. The understanding of financial statements is particularly important for the economies of prospective European Union countries, especially the smaller ones, because their growth is so dependent on the free movement of capital and extensive foreign direct investments. Researchers stress that even though the International Financial Reporting Standards (IFRS) are adopted by most of the developing countries, their business characteristics could limit their ability to accomplish expected benefits. Formal adoption does not necessarily lead towards unimpeded implementation. This chapter presents the perceptions of Macedonian managers about IFRS acceptance. First, we survey, a representative sample of Chief Financial Officers from companies listed on the Macedonian stock exchange, and executives and analysts in investment and pension funds. Next, we compare the findings with the results of the similar survey presented in the Association of Chartered Certified Accountants Reports 2011, on the attitudes of their counterparts in America, Europe, the Middle East and Asia. Finally, we offer recommendations on the further implementation of standards in the prospective European Union countries, which in turn will help their inclusion into the overall economic, social and cultural trends of the Union.

The severe material deprivation rate indicates the proportion of the population that cannot fulfil at least four of the nine needs identified as basic ones in the European conditions. The study attempts to identify factors differentiating this indicator in the European Union countries. The parameters for regression beta models were estimated on the basis of data from the European Survey of Income and Living Conditions (EU-SILC) for 2014. Such models are useful when the value of the dependent variable interval is included between 0 and 1.
It was found that severe material deprivation rate is affected by such factors as: type of household, median equalized disposable income, at-risk-of-poverty rate, relative median at-risk-of-poverty gap, inequality of income distribution, long-term unemployment rate, GDP per capita, and share of social protection expenditure in GDP.