Account‐Holding Intensity in the EU Accountability Landscape: A Comprehensive Review of EU agencies' Institutional Accountability Relationships

In this article, we propose a novel conceptualization of account‐holding intensity – defined as both the frequency and diligence of account‐holding – as an instrument for analysing the behaviour of account‐holders in the accountability landscape of EU agencies. We examine the account‐holding intensity of six major institutional EU account‐holders through a complementary mixed‐methods approach that combines quantitative survey data and qualitative interview data collected from directors and senior managers of EU agencies. Account‐holding intensity is measured through the survey data, with the interview data providing detailed insight into why some account‐holders are more/less active and/or diligent than others. The survey and interview data are furthermore triangulated with in‐depth interviews with account‐holders and unobtrusive indicators of account‐holding intensity. This amounts to a comprehensive empirical review of the EU agencies' institutional accountability relationships, which reveals how different account‐holders are driven by different institutional logics that are associated with different account‐holding intensities.