A new theoretical framework for understanding how social, economic,
and political conflicts influence international institutions and their
place in the global order
Today's liberal international institutional order is being challenged by
the rising power of illiberal states and by domestic political changes
inside liberal states. Against this backdrop, Ideology and
International Institutions offers a broader understanding of
international institutions by arguing that the politics of
multilateralism has always been based on ideology and ideological
divisions. Erik Voeten develops new theories and measures to make sense
of past and current challenges to multilateral institutions.
Voeten presents a straightforward theoretical framework that analyzes
multilateral institutions as attempts by states to shift the policies of
others toward their preferred ideological positions. He then measures
how states have positioned themselves in global ideological conflicts
during the past seventy-five years. Empirical chapters illustrate how
ideological struggles shape the design of international institutions,
membership in international institutions, and the critical role of
multilateral institutions in militarized conflicts. Voeten also examines
populism's rise and other ideological threats to the liberal
international order.
Ideology and International Institutions explores the essential ways in
which ideological contestation has influenced world politics.
