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International Norm Disputes

The Link between Contestation and Norm Robustness

Nicole Deitelhoff author Lisbeth Zimmermann author Max Lesch author Antonio Arcudi author Anton Peez author

Format:Hardback

Publisher:Oxford University Press

Published:20th Jul '23

£83.00

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International Norm Disputes cover

International Norm Disputes: The Link between Contestation and Norm Robustness offers a rich, comparative study of when and why contested international norms decline. It presents central findings on the link between contestation and norm robustness based on four detailed, contemporary case studies - the torture prohibition, the responsibility to protect, the moratorium on commercial whaling, and the duty to prosecute institutionalized in the International Criminal Court. It also includes two historical case studies - privateering and the transatlantic slave trade. This book provides in-depth knowledge on contestation and robustness dynamics of central international norms. Having meticulously collected relevant data and conducted extensive qualitative coding, the authors demonstrate that norms are likely to weaken when challengers contest the validity of a norm's core claims but remain robust when they contest a norm's application and contestation does not become permanent. These important findings, comparatively presented here for the first time, are crucial for understanding the much-discussed problems of the contemporary liberal international order. The insights provided establish how different types of challenges will affect global governance mechanisms and which conditions are most likely to create fundamental change.

This timely study tests the limits of normative contestation. This team of scholars show that it is important to distinguish challenges to the application of a norm from those that challenge the very validity of the norm itself. The former may help to bring potential adherents onboard, while the latter is more likely to spell instability. This study makes an important contribution at a time when international norms seem besieged from the left and the right. * Beth Simmons, Andrea Mitchell University Professor in Law, Political Science and Business Ethics University of Pennsylvania *
International Norm Disputes unpacks the effects of international norm contestation, arguing that disputes over the application of norms can shift their content, but arguments over the validity of norms can undermine them. A striking finding, across six rich and nuanced case studies, is that the clustering of norms and their embeddedness in institutions that promote procedural fairness enhance norm robustness. The book offers an important advance in our understanding of international norm dynamics. * Wayne Sandholtz, John A. McCone Chair in International Relations, Professor of International Relations and Law, University of Southern California *
International Norm Disputes is the long-awaited summary of a decade of frontline research on the contestation of international norms. Combining theory development, in-depth case studies, and comparison, the book significantly advances our understanding of the normative robustness of the liberal international order. * Jonas Tallberg, Professor of Political Science University of Stockholm *
This book represents a major milestone in the study of norm contestations and norm robustness. The distinction between applicatory and validity contestations specifies the conditions under which challenges to international norms strengthen or weaken international institutions. A "must read!" at a time when the liberal international order faces deep contestations! * Thomas Risse, Director, Berlin International College of Research and Graduate Training Senior Professor, Cluster of Excellence "Contestations of the Liberal Script" Freie Universität Berlin *

ISBN: 9780198873235

Dimensions: 240mm x 163mm x 20mm

Weight: 578g

304 pages