Mercenaries: Strong Norm, Weak Law

Percy, Sarah

doi:10.1017/s0020818307070130

Cited by 74 publications

(42 citation statements)

References 27 publications

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“…4 Martha Finnemore (1996a: 32), for example, addressed this directly by noting that Wendt, Dessler, Kratochwil, Ruggie, Onuf, 'and other early proponents of these sociological approaches' had been repeatedly 'criticized for not demonstrating empirical applications'. 5 See, among others, Risse et al (2013), Gillies (2010), Kelley (2008), Percy (2007). 6 The relevance of Friedrich Kratochwil and John Ruggie's formulation of the internal inconsistencies of the mid-1980s regime theory remains undiminished here.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 95%

Lost in translation: a critique of constructivist norm research

Hofferberth

Weber

2014

J Int Relat Dev

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In their attempt to explain change in international politics, an emerging group of scholars in the 1990s emphasised the importance of 'non-material factors'. Questions about the creation, evolution, and impact of norms obtained a prominent place in their theorising. Cast in a constructivist frame, this norm research promised to be a viable alternative to established approaches and while it has indeed broadened the perspective on state behaviour in International Relations, we argue that at the same time it entailed major conceptual and methodological problems which have not yet been spelled out comprehensively. Mainly, the insight that norms are constantly renegotiated in social interaction has been lost in the translation of social-theoretical claims of early constructivism into empirical research agendas. The ensuing research is best characterised as a cultural-determinist framework which is ultimately ill-equipped for the initial proposition of explaining change. We develop this critique by reconstructing the theoretical and methodological decisions of constructivist norm research. We then propose to re-conceptualise the connection between norms and action and suggest an interpretive methodology that allows delivering on the ambitious promise to explain processes of normative change in international politics. We illustrate this claim by reviewing constructivist norm research on 'humanitarian interventions' and by outlining a relational-processualist perspective on this issue.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 95%

Lost in translation: a critique of constructivist norm research

Hofferberth

Weber

2014

J Int Relat Dev

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“…In finance, this has meant the increased integration of private sector advocacy associations in the design of regulatory regimes (see Tsingou, 2009;Baker, 2010;Young, 2012). In security, the use of private sector actors has similarly increased, as private firms now take on many critical functions of security provision --everything from basic administrative functions to logistics to the widespread use of private security companies to carry out combat operations (Leander, 2005(Leander, , 2009Percy, 2007). As military operations are often conducted with and/or by private companies there has been a commercialization and globalization of organized violence.…”

Section: Interrelationships Between Security and Financementioning

confidence: 99%

Global governance in crisis? Fragmentation, risk and world order

Held

Young

2013

Int Polit

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This paper examines some of the similarities between finance and security from a global governance perspective. We argue that finance and security share a number of similar properties in terms of prevailing arrangements at the level of global governance, and also a number of problems which we conceptualize as problems of governance capacity. Such similarities, we argue, are not unique to these domains but actually tell us something about the character of global governance as a whole. In so doing, we argue that the evolution in thinking about governance challenges and the institutional solutions required to meet them further underscores an already pernicious dynamic at work in global governance.

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“…It is true, Raustiala argues, that precision, like many other features of treaties, may improve their effectiveness, but this is not so because it renders them more 'legalized'. Percy (2007) concludes her article on the institutionalization of the anti-mercenary norm by arguing that precision may even weaken the level of legalization of a particular rule. She states:…”

Section: Precisionmentioning

confidence: 99%

‘Legalization’ in international relations: A conceptual analysis

Bélanger

Fontaine-Skronski

2012

Social Science Information

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In 2000, International Organization published a special issue on the theme of 'legalization in world politics' which laid the foundation for a very influential research programme on international cooperation and the role of institutions in international affairs. The most enduring legacy of the special issue is the operationalization of the concept of 'legalization' itself, which is defined as a combination of three dimensions: obligation, precision and delegation. After deconstructing the initial concept, this research presents a systematic evaluation of the concept of legalization, taking stock of a decade-long history of empirical use. It then proposes a new concept structure by questioning the levels of substitutability and independence originally assigned to each of the three initial dimensions. RésuméEn 2000, la revue International Organization publiait un numéro entièrement consacré au phénomène de la 'juridicisation' des échanges internationaux (international legalization en anglais). Un collectif d'auteurs reconnus y proposait une opérationnalisation du concept de juridicisation, définie comme une combinaison de trois dimensions institutionnelles: l'obligation, la précision et la délégation. Cette innovation conceptuelle eut un impact considérable sur la production académique en Relations internationales. Après avoir dégagé la structure théorique du concept initial, le présent article passe en revue les applications empiriques qui en ont fait usage au cours de la

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Mercenaries: Strong Norm, Weak Law

Cited by 74 publications

References 27 publications

Lost in translation: a critique of constructivist norm research

Lost in translation: a critique of constructivist norm research

Global governance in crisis? Fragmentation, risk and world order

‘Legalization’ in international relations: A conceptual analysis

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