The interview evidence used in the book is derived from a series of semi-structured and standardized interviews. Between April 2008 and June 2010, I conducted 33 semi-structured interviews with EU policymakers, local and regional civil servants and employees of private organizations. The interviewees were asked a range of questions regarding the professional mission statement they were expected to uphold, their institutional position, their interactions with others when implementing EU regional funds and the challenges and opportunities they associate with EU funding.

Additional standardized interviews were conducted among civil servants involved in EU funds implementation between June and November 2012. Prospective participants were contacted first by letter or telephone, and then by an email which contained a link to an online questionnaire. Given the likelihood that experiences with EU funding are not uniform among member states, respondents were recruited to represent a variety of states in different EU geographical areas. In total, 156 officials participated from 19 EU member states (see Tables A.1 and A.2). Since the interviews were intended to yield expert opinions on EU spending, the survey is based on a sample of respondents who were each identified as the most knowledgeable person in the relevant ministry on EU regional policy. The questionnaire consisted of 18 questions. It was developed in English and was translated into German, French, Polish and Portuguese (available upon request). For the entire questionnaire, see the online supplementary information available for this book.