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The politicization of international economic institutions in US public debates

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  • Thomas Rixen
  • Bernhard Zangl

Abstract

Recent research has noted a trend of increased “politicization” of international politics, i.e., decisions of international institutions are increasingly debated and contested within civil society. What is lacking so far are explanations for this trend. In this paper we derive four potential explanations and empirically test them. The first two, society-centered, hypotheses focus on the process of socio-economic modernization on the one hand and civil society structures on the other. The second pair of polity-centered hypotheses focuses on the decision-making power of international institutions and on their legitimacy. We measure politicization on the basis of a quantitative content analysis of US quality newspaper articles about four decisions of different international institutions in the issue area of international taxation. Our finding is that politicization is driven by the increasing decision making authority of international institutions rather than by the lack of legitimacy of their procedures or the factors emphasized by society-centered approaches. Copyright Springer Science+Business Media New York 2013

Suggested Citation

  • Thomas Rixen & Bernhard Zangl, 2013. "The politicization of international economic institutions in US public debates," The Review of International Organizations, Springer, vol. 8(3), pages 363-387, September.
    • Handle: RePEc:spr:revint:v:8:y:2013:i:3:p:363-387
    DOI: 10.1007/s11558-012-9158-5
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    10. Rixen, Thomas, 2008. "Politicization and institutional (non-) change in international taxation [Politisierung und institutioneller (Nicht-)Wandel des internationalen Steuerregimes]," Discussion Papers, Research Unit: Global Governance SP IV 2008-306, WZB Berlin Social Science Center.
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    Citations

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    Cited by:

    1. Stephen, Matthew D., 2015. "‘Can you pass the salt?’ The legitimacy of international institutions and indirect speech," EconStor Open Access Articles and Book Chapters, ZBW - Leibniz Information Centre for Economics, vol. 21(4), pages 768-792.
    2. Liesbet Hooghe & Tobias Lenz & Gary Marks, 2019. "Contested world order: The delegitimation of international governance," The Review of International Organizations, Springer, vol. 14(4), pages 731-743, December.
    3. Henning Schmidtke, 2019. "Elite legitimation and delegitimation of international organizations in the media: Patterns and explanations," The Review of International Organizations, Springer, vol. 14(4), pages 633-659, December.
    4. Christine Hackenesch & Julian Bergmann & Jan Orbie, 2021. "Development Policy under Fire? The Politicization of European External Relations," Journal of Common Market Studies, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 59(1), pages 3-19, January.
    5. Rauh, Christian & Zürn, Michael, 2020. "Authority, politicization, and alternative justifications: endogenous legitimation dynamics in global economic governance," EconStor Open Access Articles and Book Chapters, ZBW - Leibniz Information Centre for Economics, vol. 27(3), pages 583-611.
    6. Kreuder-Sonnen, Christian & Zangl, Bernhard, 2020. "Zwischen Hoffen und Bangen: Zum Verhältnis von Autorität, Politisierung und Demokratisierung in internationalen Organisationen [Between hope and fear: On the relationship between authority, politic," EconStor Open Access Articles and Book Chapters, ZBW - Leibniz Information Centre for Economics, vol. 27(1), pages 5-36.
    7. Liesbet Hooghe & Gary Marks, 2015. "Delegation and pooling in international organizations," The Review of International Organizations, Springer, vol. 10(3), pages 305-328, September.
    8. Zürn, Michael, 2019. "Politicization compared: at national, European, and global levels," EconStor Open Access Articles and Book Chapters, ZBW - Leibniz Information Centre for Economics, vol. 26(7), pages 977-995.
    9. Jeffrey King & Andrew Lugg, 2023. "Politicising pandemics: Evidence from US media coverage of the World Health Organisation," Global Policy, London School of Economics and Political Science, vol. 14(2), pages 247-259, May.
    10. Berthold Rittberger & Helena Schwarzenbeck & Bernhard Zangl, 2017. "Where Does the Buck Stop? Explaining Public Responsibility Attributions in Complex International Institutions," Journal of Common Market Studies, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 55(4), pages 909-924, July.
    11. Jonas Tallberg & Michael Zürn, 2019. "The legitimacy and legitimation of international organizations: introduction and framework," The Review of International Organizations, Springer, vol. 14(4), pages 581-606, December.

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    More about this item

    Keywords

    Politicization; International institutions; Authority; Legitimacy; Mobilization; International trade; International taxation; F13; F21; F55; F68; H87;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • F13 - International Economics - - Trade - - - Trade Policy; International Trade Organizations
    • F21 - International Economics - - International Factor Movements and International Business - - - International Investment; Long-Term Capital Movements
    • F55 - International Economics - - International Relations, National Security, and International Political Economy - - - International Institutional Arrangements
    • F68 - International Economics - - Economic Impacts of Globalization - - - Policy
    • H87 - Public Economics - - Miscellaneous Issues - - - International Fiscal Issues; International Public Goods

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