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Fragmented or cohesive transnational private regulation of sustainability standards? A comparative study

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  • Luc Fransen
  • Thomas Conzelmann

Abstract

Literature on private regulation recognizes the proliferation of competing regulatory organizations and approaches in various industries. Studies analyzing why fragmentation arises so far focus on single‐case studies, the exploration of single variables, or variation in types of fragmentation. This article analyzes why in certain industries and for certain issues regulatory organizations proliferate, while in others a single regulatory organization emerges which covers the entire industry. Through a comparative case study of private regulation of sustainability standards in the forestry, clothing, IT‐electronics, and chemicals industries, we show how a combination of low industrial concentration, civil society involvement in governance, and stringent standards of a first‐moving regulator offer the strongest explanation for a fragmented private regulatory field, while high industrial concentration, business‐driven governance, and lenient standards of a first‐moving regulator lead to cohesive regulation.

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  • Luc Fransen & Thomas Conzelmann, 2015. "Fragmented or cohesive transnational private regulation of sustainability standards? A comparative study," Regulation & Governance, John Wiley & Sons, vol. 9(3), pages 259-275, September.
    • Handle: RePEc:wly:reggov:v:9:y:2015:i:3:p:259-275
    DOI: 10.1111/rego.12055
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    1. Luc Fransen & Brian Burgoon, 2012. "A market for worker rights: Explaining business support for international private labour regulation," Review of International Political Economy, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 19(2), pages 236-266.
    2. Büthe Tim, 2010. "Private Regulation in the Global Economy: Guest Editor's Note," Business and Politics, De Gruyter, vol. 12(3), pages 1-2, October.
    3. Tad Mutersbaugh, 2005. "Fighting Standards with Standards: Harmonization, Rents, and Social Accountability in Certified Agrofood Networks," Environment and Planning A, , vol. 37(11), pages 2033-2051, November.
    4. Turcotte, Marie-France & Reinecke, Juliane & den Hond, Frank, 2014. "Explaining variation in the multiplicity of private social and environmental regulation: a multi-case integration across the coffee, forestry and textile sectors," Business and Politics, Cambridge University Press, vol. 16(1), pages 151-189, April.
    5. Büthe Tim, 2010. "Private Regulation in the Global Economy: A (P)Review," Business and Politics, De Gruyter, vol. 12(3), pages 1-40, October.
    6. Niklas Egels-Zandén & Evelina Wahlqvist, 2007. "Post-Partnership Strategies for Defining Corporate Responsibility: The Business Social Compliance Initiative," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 70(2), pages 175-189, January.
    7. Cashore, Benjamin & van Kooten, G. Cornelis & Vertinsky, Ilan & Auld, Graeme & Affolderbach, Julia, 2005. "Private or self-regulation? A comparative study of forest certification choices in Canada, the United States and Germany," Forest Policy and Economics, Elsevier, vol. 7(1), pages 53-69, January.
    8. Frank Biermann & Philipp Pattberg & Harro van Asselt & Fariborz Zelli, 2009. "The Fragmentation of Global Governance Architectures: A Framework for Analysis," Global Environmental Politics, MIT Press, vol. 9(4), pages 14-40, November.
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    Cited by:

    1. Benjamin Cashore & Jette Steen Knudsen & Jeremy Moon & Hamish van der Ven, 2021. "Private authority and public policy interactions in global context: Governance spheres for problem solving," Regulation & Governance, John Wiley & Sons, vol. 15(4), pages 1166-1182, October.
    2. Laura M. G. Hidalgo & Rosane N. de Faria & Roberta Souza Piao & Christine Wieck, 2023. "Multiplicity of sustainability standards and potential trade costs in the palm oil industry," Agribusiness, John Wiley & Sons, Ltd., vol. 39(1), pages 263-284, January.
    3. Imbrogiano, Jean-Pierre & Steiner, Bodo & Mori Junior, Renzo & Sturman, Kathryn, 2023. "What enables metals ‘being’ ‘responsible’? An exploratory study on the enabling of organizational identity claims through a new sustainability standard," Resources Policy, Elsevier, vol. 83(C).
    4. Onna M. van den Broek & Robyn Klingler‐Vidra, 2022. "The UN Sustainable Development Goals as a North Star: How an intermediary network makes, takes, and retrofits the meaning of the Sustainable Development Goals," Regulation & Governance, John Wiley & Sons, vol. 16(4), pages 1306-1324, October.

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