Hostname: page-component-78c5997874-m6dg7 Total loading time: 0 Render date: 2024-11-06T11:00:50.421Z Has data issue: false hasContentIssue false
  • English
  • Français

Why Comply? The Domestic Constituency Mechanism

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  17 May 2005

Xinyuan Dai
Xinyuan Dai
Affiliation:
University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, [email protected]
Get access

Abstract

Why do countries comply with international agreements? While scholars have done rigorous work to address compliance and enforcement in an international game, less analytical attention has been paid to domestic mechanisms of compliance. However, because international agreements have domestic distributional consequences, there exist domestic sources of enforcement. In this article, I develop an analytical framework of domestic accountability, where I identify specific channels of influence through which domestic constituencies can influence national compliance. Using a game theoretic model, I show that a government's compliance decision reflects the electoral leverage and the informational status of domestic constituencies. This framework further provides a theoretical rationale for why and how international institutions may influence states' compliance through domestic mechanisms. The European acid rain regime offers an empirical illustration of the domestic constituency argument.I have benefited from the generous help of many colleagues and friends in the course of this research. I would particularly like to thank the editor-in-chief of IO, anonymous reviewers of this article, as well as William Bernhard, Paul Diehl, Daniel Drezner, James Fearon, Robert Keohane, Charles Lipson, Ronald Mitchell, Robert Pahre, Duncan Snidal, Detlef Sprinz, Milan Svolik, and Pieter van Houten. Nazlı Avdan provided valuable research assistance. MacArthur Foundation, the U.S. Institute of Peace, Fuqua School of Business at Duke University, and the Research Board at University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign sponsored various phases of this research.

Type
Research Article
Information
International Organization , Volume 59 , Issue 2 , April 2005 , pp. 363 - 398
Copyright
© 2005 The IO Foundation and Cambridge University Press

Access options

Get access to the full version of this content by using one of the access options below. (Log in options will check for institutional or personal access. Content may require purchase if you do not have access.)

References

REFERENCES

Abbott, Kenneth W., and Duncan Snidal. 2000. Hard and Soft Law in International Governance. International Organization 54 (3):421–56.Google Scholar
Adamova, Eva. 1993. Environmental Management in Czecho-Slovakia. In Environmental Action in Eastern Europe: Responses to Crisis, edited by Barbara Jancar-Webster, 42–57. Armonk, N.Y.: M. E. Sharpe.
Axelrod, Robert. 1984. The Evolution of Cooperation. New York: Basic Books.
Boehmer-Christiansen, Sonja, and Jim Skea. 1991. Acid Politics: Environmental and Energy Policies in Britain and Germany. New York: Belhaven Press.
Bueno de Mesquita, Bruce, Alastair Smith, Randolph M. Siverson, and James D. Morrow. 2003. The Logic of Political Survival. Cambridge, Mass.: MIT Press.
Burley, Anne-Marie, and Walter Mattli. 1993. Europe Before the Court: A Political Theory of Legal Integration. International Organization 47 (1):41–76.Google Scholar
Cole, Alistair, and Brian Doherty. 1995. France: Pas commes les autres—The French Greens at the Crossroads. In The Green Challenge: The Development of Green Parties in Europe, edited by Dick Richardson and Chris Rootes, 45–65. New York: Routledge.
Conradt, David, and Russell Dalton. 1988. The Western German Electorate and the Party System: Continuity and Change in the 1980s. Review of Politics 50 (1):3–29.Google Scholar
Cortell, Andrew P., and James W. Davis. 1996. How Do International Institutions Matter? The Domestic Impact of International Rules and Norms. International Studies Quarterly 40 (4):451–78.Google Scholar
Dai, Xinyuan. 2002a. Information Systems in Treaty Regimes. World Politics 54 (4):405–36.Google Scholar
Dai, Xinyuan. 2002b. Political Regimes and International Trade: The Democratic Difference Revisited. American Political Science Review 96 (1):159–65.Google Scholar
Dalton, Russell. 1994. The Green Rainbow: Environmental Groups in Western Europe. New Haven, Conn.: Yale University Press.
Downs, George W., David M. Rocke, and Peter N. Barsoom. 1996. Is the Good News About Compliance Good News About Cooperation? International Organization 50 (3):379–406.Google Scholar
Economic Commission for Europe. 1991. Assessment of Long-Range Transboundary Air Pollution: Report Prepared Within the Framework of the Convention on Long-range Transboundary Air Pollution (gov. doc. no. UN/ECE/EB.AIR/26). New York: United Nations.
Economic Commission for Europe. 1993. The State of Transboundary Air Pollution: 1992 Update: Report Prepared Within the Framework of the Convention on Long-Range Transboundary Air Pollution (gov. doc. no. UN/ECE/EB.AIR/34). New York: United Nations.
Economic Commission for Europe. 1995. Strategies and Policies for Air Pollution Abatement: 1994 Major Review Prepared under the Convention on Long-Range Transboundary Air Pollution (gov. doc. no. UN/ECE/EB.AIR/44). New York: United Nations.
Enyedi, György, August Gijswijt, and Barbara Rhode. 1987. Environmental Policies in East and West. London: Taylor Graham.
Fearon, James D. 1998. Bargaining, Enforcement, and International Cooperation. International Organization 52 (2):269–305.Google Scholar
Fearon, James D. 1999. Electoral Accountability and the Control of Politicians: Selecting Good Types versus Sanctioning Poor Performance. In Democracy, Accountability, and Representation, edited by Adam Przeworski, Susan Stokes, and Bernard Manin, 55–97. New York: Cambridge University Press.
Ferejohn, John. 1986. Incumbent Performance and Electoral Control. Public Choice 50 (1–3):5–26.Google Scholar
Fiorina, Morris P. 1981. Retrospective Voting in American National Elections. New Haven, Conn.: Yale University Press.
Fisher, Roger. 1981. Improving Compliance with International Law. Charlottesville: University of Virginia Press.
Frankland, Gene. 1995. Germany: The Rise, Fall and Recovery of Die Grünen. In The Green Challenge: The Development of Green Parties in Europe, edited by Dick Richardson and Chris Rootes, 23–44. New York: Routledge.
Gilligan, Michael. 2004. Is There a Broader-Deeper Trade-off in International Multilateral Agreements? International Organization 58 (3):459–84.Google Scholar
Goldstein, Judith. 1996. International Law and Domestic Institutions: Reconciling North American “Unfair” Trade Laws. International Organization 50 (4):541–64.Google Scholar
Goldstein, Judith, and Lisa Martin. 2000. Legalization, Trade Liberalization, and Domestic Politics: A Cautionary Note. International Organization 54 (3):603–32.Google Scholar
Grossman, Sanford J., and Oliver D. Hart. 1983. An Analysis of the Principal-Agent Problem. Econometrica 51 (1):7–45.Google Scholar
Haas, Peter. 1989. Do Regimes Matter? Epistemic Communities and Mediterranean Pollution Control. International Organization 43 (3):377–403.Google Scholar
Haas, Peter, Robert Keohane, and Marc Levy. 1993. Institutions for the Earth: Sources of Effective International Environmental Protection. Cambridge, Mass.: MIT Press.
Haggard, Stephan, and Beth Simmons. 1987. Theories of International Regimes. International Organization 41 (3):491–517.Google Scholar
Hardi, Peter. 1994. East Central European Policy Making: The Case of the Environment. In Environmental Cooperation in Europe: The Political Dimension, edited by Otmar Höll, 177–201. Boulder, Colo.: Westview Press.
Holmström, Bengt. 1979. Moral Hazard and Observability. Bell Journal of Economics 10 (1):74–91.Google Scholar
International Social Survey Program (ISSP). 1996. International Social Survey Program: Environment, 1993 [computer file] (study no. 6640). Ann Arbor, Mich.: Inter-University Consortium for Political and Social Research. 〈www.icpsr.umich.edu〉.
Jancar-Webster, Barbara. 1993a. Eastern Europe and the Former Soviet Union. In Environmental Politics in the International Arena: Movements, Parties, Organizations and Policy, edited by Sheldon Kamieniecki, 199–221. Albany: State University of New York Press.
Jancar-Webster, Barbara, ed. 1993b. Environmental Action in Eastern Europe: Responses to Crisis. Armonk, N.Y.: M. E. Sharpe.
Keck, Margaret, and Kathryn Sikkink. 1998. Activists Beyond Borders: Advocacy Networks in International Politics. Ithaca, N.Y.: Cornell University Press.
Keohane, Robert O. 1984. After Hegemony: Cooperation and Discord in the World Political Economy. Princeton, N.J.: Princeton University Press.
Keohane, Robert O., and Lisa L. Martin. 1995. The Promise of Institutional Theory. International Security 20 (1):39–51.Google Scholar
Kitschelt, Herbert. 1993. The Green Phenomenon in Western Party Systems. In Environmental Politics in the International Arena: Movements, Parties, Organizations and Policy, edited by Sheldon Kamieniecki, 93–112. Albany: State University of New York Press.
Kreps, David. 1990. Corporate Culture and Economic Theory. In Perspectives on Positive Political Economy, edited by James Alt and Kenneth Shepsle, 90–143. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.
Laugen, Torunn. 2000. The Reluctant Pusher: Norway and the Acid Rain Convention. In International Environmental Agreements and Domestic Policies: The Case of Acid Rain, edited by Arild Underdal and Kenneth Hanf, 109–38. Aldershot, Britain: Ashgate.
Levy, Marc. 1993. European Acid Rain: The Power of Tote-Board Diplomacy. In Institutions for the Earth: Sources of Effective International Environmental Protection, edited by Peter Haas, Robert Keohane, and Marc Levy, 75–132. Cambridge, Mass.: MIT Press.
Lipson, Charles. 1991. Why are Some International Agreements Informal? International Organization 45 (4):495–538.Google Scholar
Lohmann, Susanne. 1998. An Information Rationale for the Power of Special Interests. American Political Science Review 92 (4):809–28.Google Scholar
Martin, Lisa L. 1992. Coercive Cooperation: Explaining Multilateral Economic Sanctions. Princeton, N.J.: Princeton University Press.
Martin, Lisa L. 2000. Democratic Commitments: Legislatures and International Cooperation. Princeton, N.J.: Princeton University Press.
Martin, Lisa L., and Beth A. Simmons. 1998. Theories and Empirical Studies of International Institutions. International Organization 52 (4):729–57.Google Scholar
Milner, Helen. 1997. Interests, Institutions, and Information: Domestic Politics and International Relations. Princeton, N.J.: Princeton University Press.
Mitchell, Ronald B. 1994. Regime Design Matters: Intentional Oil Pollution and Treaty Compliance. International Organization 48 (3):425–58.Google Scholar
Morrow, James D. 1994. Modeling the Forms of International Cooperation: Distribution Versus Information. International Organization 48 (3):387–423.Google Scholar
Oye, Kenneth, ed. 1986. Cooperation Under Anarchy. Princeton, N.J.: Princeton University Press.
Persson, Torsten, Guido Tabellini, and Francesco Trebbi. 2001. Electoral Rules and Corruption. NBER Working Paper 8154. Cambridge, Mass.: National Bureau of Economic Research.
Rabier, Jacques-Rene, Helene Riffault, and Ronald Inglehart. 1988. Euro-Barometer 25: Holiday Travel and Environmental Problems, April, 1986 [computer file] (study no. 8616). Ann Arbor, Mich.: Inter-University Consortium for Political and Social Research. 〈www.icpsr.umich.edu〉.
Raustiala, Kal, and Anne-Marie Slaughter. 2002. International Law, International Relations and Compliance. In Handbook of International Relations, edited by Walter Carlsnaes, Beth A. Simmons, and Thomas Risse-Kappen, 539–58. London: Sage.
Reif, Karlheinz, and Eric Marlier. 1998. Euro-Barometer 43.1BIS: Regional Development and Consumer and Environmental Issues, May-June 1995 [computer file] (study no. 6840). Ann Arbor, Mich.: Inter-University Consortium for Political and Social Research. 〈www.icpsr.umich.edu〉.
Reif, Karlheinz, and Anna Melich. 1990. Euro-Barometer 29: Environmental Problems and Cancer, March-April 1988 [computer file] (study no. 9083). Ann Arbor, Mich.: Inter-University Consortium for Political and Social Research. 〈www.icpsr.umich.edu〉.
Reif, Karlheinz, and Anna Melich. 1993. Euro-Barometer 31A: European Elections, 1989: Post-Election Survey, June-July 1989 [computer file] (study no. 9360). Ann Arbor, Mich.: Inter-University Consortium for Political and Social Research. 〈www.icpsr.umich.edu〉.
Reif, Karlheinz, and Anna Melich. 1998. Euro-Barometer 35.0: Foreign Relations, The Common Agricultural Policy, and Environmental Concerns, Spring 1991 [computer file] (study no. 9697). Ann Arbor, Mich.: Inter-University Consortium for Political and Social Research. 〈www.icpsr.umich.edu〉.
Reitan, Marit. 1997. Norway: A Case of ‘Splendid Isolation.’ In European Environmental Policy: The Pioneers, edited by Mikael Skou Andersen and Duncan Liefferink, 287–331. New York: Manchester University Press.
Sand, Peter. 1991. International Cooperation: The Environmental Experiences. In Preserving the Global Environment: The Challenge of Shared Leadership, edited by Jessica T. Mathews, 236–79. New York: Norton.
Schultz, Kenneth. 1998. Domestic Opposition and Signaling in International Crises. American Political Science Review 92 (4):829–44.Google Scholar
Sikkink, Kathryn. 1993. Human Rights, Principled Issue-Networks, and Sovereignty in Latin America. International Organization 47 (3):411–41.Google Scholar
Simmons, Beth A. 2000. International Law and State Behavior: Commitment and Compliance in International Monetary Affairs. American Political Science Review 94 (4):819–35.Google Scholar
Simmons, Beth A., and Lisa L. Martin. 2002. International Organizations and Institutions. In Handbook of International Relations, edited by Walter Carlsnaes, Beth A. Simmons, and Thomas Risse-Kappen, 192–211. London: Sage.
Skea, Jim, and Caroline du Monteuil. 2000. What's This Got to Do with Me? France and Transboundary Air Pollution. In International Environmental Agreements and Domestic Policies: The Case of Acid Rain, edited by Arild Underdal and Kenneth Hanf, 225–53. Aldershot, Britain: Ashgate.
Snidal, Duncan. 1985. Coordination versus Prisoner's Dilemma: Implications for International Cooperation and Regimes. American Political Science Review 79 (4):723–42.Google Scholar
Sprinz, Detlef. 1992. Why Countries Support International Environmental Agreements: The Regulation of Acid Rain in Europe. Ph.D. diss., University of Michigan, Ann Arbor.
Sprinz, Detlef, and Andreas Wahl. 2000. Reversing (Inter)National Policy—Germany's Response to Transboundary Air Pollution. In International Environmental Agreements and Domestic Policies: The Case of Acid Rain, edited by Arild Underdal and Kenneth Hanf, 139–66. Aldershot, Britain: Ashgate.
Underdal, Arild, and Kenneth Hanf, eds. 2000. International Environmental Agreements and Domestic Policies: The Case of Acid Rain. Aldershot, Britain: Ashgate.
Victor, David, Kal Raustiala, and Eugene Skolnikoff. 1998. The Implementation and Effectiveness of International Environmental Commitments: Theory and Practice. Cambridge, Mass.: MIT Press.
Weiss, Edith Brown. 1997. International Compliance with Nonbinding Accords. Washington, D.C.: American Society of International Law.
Weiss, Edith Brown, and Harold K. Jacobson. 1998. Engaging Countries: Strengthening Compliance with International Environmental Accords. Cambridge, Mass.: MIT Press.
Wetstone, Gregory, and Armin Rosencranz. 1983. Acid Rain in Europe and North America: National Responses to An International Problem. Washington, D.C.: Environmental Law Institute.
Young, Oran. 1989. The Politics of International Regime Formation: Managing Natural Resources and the Environment. International Organization 43 (3):349–75.Google Scholar