Historical Institutionalism in International Relations

Fioretos, Orfeo

doi:10.1017/s0020818311000002

Cited by 356 publications

(149 citation statements)

References 75 publications

Supporting

Mentioning

147

Contrasting

Unclassified

Order By: Relevance

“…Existing research tends to emphasize the reasons why IOs are resistant to change, citing demanding decision hurdles (Scharpf 1988), stabilizing organizational cultures (Barnett and Finnemore 2004), and feedback effects that lock in the status quo (Fioretos 2011). Our results suggest a more complex picture.…”

Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 69%

Stability and change in international policy-making: A punctuated equilibrium approach

2017

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

International organizations (IOs) have developed into important policy venues beyond the state. Yet our understanding of the broader dynamics of IO policy-making is limited. This article offers the first comparative analysis of macro patterns in IO policy-making. Theoretically, we draw on punctuated equilibrium theory to develop hypotheses about stability and change in the orientation of IO policy agendas. Empirically, we examine novel data on the policy output of five generalpurpose IOs between 1980 and 2015, combining statistical analysis and comparative case illustrations. The analysis yields two central results. First, the policy agendas of all five IOs display patterns of punctuated equilibria, with longer periods of stability interrupted by shorter periods of dramatic change. Second, the level of institutional friction in decision-making contributes to variation in punctuations across IOs and within IOs over time. The results suggest four broader implications: (1) punctuated equilibrium theory applies to a broader empirical domain than previously thought; (2) patterns of change in IOs are more complex than conventionally expected; (3) institutional friction matters for IOs' responsiveness to societal demands and problem pressures; and (4) deeper integration of punctuated equilibrium theory into the study of IOs can pave the way for a promising IR research agenda.Rev Int Organ

show abstract

Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 69%

Stability and change in international policy-making: A punctuated equilibrium approach

2017

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

show abstract

“…Finally, my results have implications for the literature on institutional development in global governance (Fioretos 2011;Lipscy 2015). While both historical and rational choice institutionalism tend to highlight the reasons for IOs' resistance to change (Hawkins et al 2006;Koremenos et al 2001), more recent studies have shown that firm legitimacy pressures drive IOs to adapt their institutional designs to normative demands (Zürn 2018;Lenz and Viola 2017).…”

Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 80%

Elite legitimation and delegitimation of international organizations in the media: Patterns and explanations

Schmidtke

2018

Rev Int Organ

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Legitimacy communication in the media reveals when elites become attentive to international organizations' (IOs) legitimacy and whether they support or question their legitimacy. The intensity and tone of this communication results in communicative support or legitimacy pressures on IOs. Extant research gives few insights into the scope and nature of elite legitimacy communication and the factors that shape it. This article offers a comparative and longitudinal analysis of the patterns of elite communication in the media. It maps and explains variation in the intensity and tone of legitimacy communication based on a quantitative content analysis of roughly 6500 legitimacy evaluations of the EU, the G8, and the UN in the quality press of four established democracies. A multinomial logistic regression analysis yields three key results. First, in contrast to conventional expectations, there is no clear shift from low intensity and positive tone to high intensity and negative tone. Second, communication intensity is considerably higher for powerful IOs. Third, political events, including security crises and institutional reform, are important drivers of the ebbs and flows of western elites' communicative support and pressure on major IOs.

show abstract

“…Path dependency is a key concept in historical institutionalism, a theoretical tradition that has been predominantly applied in the study of comparative politics, but that also has found increasing application in the study of European integration and international relations (Fioretos 2011). Historical institutionalism, with its emphasis on the structuring power of institutions and its expectation of continuity, also contains statements of a normative character.…”

Section: Path Dependencymentioning

confidence: 99%

A Liberal Institutionalist Perspective on China-EU Relations

Christiansen¹

2016

China, the European Union, and the International Politics of Global Governance

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Historical Institutionalism in International Relations

Cited by 356 publications

References 75 publications

Stability and change in international policy-making: A punctuated equilibrium approach

Stability and change in international policy-making: A punctuated equilibrium approach

Elite legitimation and delegitimation of international organizations in the media: Patterns and explanations

A Liberal Institutionalist Perspective on China-EU Relations

Contact Info

Product

Resources

About