Sarah S. Stroup and Wendy H. Wong
- Published in print:
- 2017
- Published Online:
- May 2018
- ISBN:
- 9781501702143
- eISBN:
- 9781501709777
- Item type:
- book
- Publisher:
- Cornell University Press
- DOI:
- 10.7591/cornell/9781501702143.001.0001
- Subject:
- Political Science, International Relations and Politics
Despite public favorability towards international non-governmental organizations (INGOs), most of these groups toil in total obscurity. A very few INGOs, active in human rights promotion, ...
More
Despite public favorability towards international non-governmental organizations (INGOs), most of these groups toil in total obscurity. A very few INGOs, active in human rights promotion, humanitarian relief, and environmental protection, do secure widespread authority in the form of deference from multiple audiences engaged in global politics. Having achieved this status as a “leading INGO,” however, they are trapped. To maintain their status and placate their many audiences, these leading INGOs advance incrementalist proposals and achieve “vanilla victories” - palatable to a wide array of audiences, but also unremarkable. Meanwhile, other INGOs’ strategies are similarly shaped by their status: they are free to issue harsh condemnations and advance radical proposals, but these generally get ignored. Stroup and Wong offer the first exploration of the vast differences among INGOs in their authority, and then explore how status shapes INGO strategies as they seek to influence states, corporations, and one another.Less
Despite public favorability towards international non-governmental organizations (INGOs), most of these groups toil in total obscurity. A very few INGOs, active in human rights promotion, humanitarian relief, and environmental protection, do secure widespread authority in the form of deference from multiple audiences engaged in global politics. Having achieved this status as a “leading INGO,” however, they are trapped. To maintain their status and placate their many audiences, these leading INGOs advance incrementalist proposals and achieve “vanilla victories” - palatable to a wide array of audiences, but also unremarkable. Meanwhile, other INGOs’ strategies are similarly shaped by their status: they are free to issue harsh condemnations and advance radical proposals, but these generally get ignored. Stroup and Wong offer the first exploration of the vast differences among INGOs in their authority, and then explore how status shapes INGO strategies as they seek to influence states, corporations, and one another.
Sarah S. Stroup and Wendy H. Wong
- Published in print:
- 2017
- Published Online:
- May 2018
- ISBN:
- 9781501702143
- eISBN:
- 9781501709777
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Cornell University Press
- DOI:
- 10.7591/cornell/9781501702143.003.0007
- Subject:
- Political Science, International Relations and Politics
Our conclusion revisits the main findings in this study, but since we are hopeful that our authority framework travels to other parts of IR, we discuss extensions of and exceptions to the authority ...
More
Our conclusion revisits the main findings in this study, but since we are hopeful that our authority framework travels to other parts of IR, we discuss extensions of and exceptions to the authority trap. For this, we both bring forth the example of the International Criminal Court, which, if anything, was not a vanilla victory. We also explore how the authority trap might work differently for non-INGOs, specifically non-state groups that use violence, and for global governance generally. What we show is that while the authority trap may be difficult to escape, it is not ironclad.Less
Our conclusion revisits the main findings in this study, but since we are hopeful that our authority framework travels to other parts of IR, we discuss extensions of and exceptions to the authority trap. For this, we both bring forth the example of the International Criminal Court, which, if anything, was not a vanilla victory. We also explore how the authority trap might work differently for non-INGOs, specifically non-state groups that use violence, and for global governance generally. What we show is that while the authority trap may be difficult to escape, it is not ironclad.
Sarah S. Stroup and Wendy H. Wong
- Published in print:
- 2017
- Published Online:
- May 2018
- ISBN:
- 9781501702143
- eISBN:
- 9781501709777
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Cornell University Press
- DOI:
- 10.7591/cornell/9781501702143.003.0002
- Subject:
- Political Science, International Relations and Politics
This is the theoretical chapter of the book. It outlines a theory of INGO authority, highlighting the importance of audiences and explaining the authority trap. Unlike states, INGOs are an authority, ...
More
This is the theoretical chapter of the book. It outlines a theory of INGO authority, highlighting the importance of audiences and explaining the authority trap. Unlike states, INGOs are an authority, rather than in authority, where authority is defined as deference from a particular audience. Authority exists in the context of particular social relationships, in particular from the most important audiences for INGOs: states, corporations, and other INGOs. Very few INGOs successfully secure deference from multiple audiences; those that do are referred to as leading INGOs. Having received widespread deference, leading INGOs are constrained by the need to satisfy the varied values and preferences of their supporters, and thus find themselves in the authority trap, incentivized to make moderate choices.Less
This is the theoretical chapter of the book. It outlines a theory of INGO authority, highlighting the importance of audiences and explaining the authority trap. Unlike states, INGOs are an authority, rather than in authority, where authority is defined as deference from a particular audience. Authority exists in the context of particular social relationships, in particular from the most important audiences for INGOs: states, corporations, and other INGOs. Very few INGOs successfully secure deference from multiple audiences; those that do are referred to as leading INGOs. Having received widespread deference, leading INGOs are constrained by the need to satisfy the varied values and preferences of their supporters, and thus find themselves in the authority trap, incentivized to make moderate choices.
