Abstract
Over the last decade, international regimes have become a major focus of empirical research and theoretical debate within international relations. This article provides a critical review of this literature. We survey contending definitions of regimes and suggest dimensions along which regimes vary over time or across cases; these dimensions might be used to operationalize “regime change.” We then examine four approaches to regime analysis: structural, game-theoretic, functional, and cognitive. We conclude that the major shortcoming of the regimes literature is its failure to incorporate domestic politics adequately. We suggest a research program that begins with the central insights of the interdependence literature which have been ignored in the effort to construct “systemic” theory.
Keywords
OperationalizationConstruct (python library)International relations theoryInternational relationsPositive economicsFocus (optics)PoliticsPolitical scienceInternational studiesSociologyEpistemologyEconomicsSocial science
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Publication Info
- Year
- 1987
- Type
- article
- Volume
- 41
- Issue
- 3
- Pages
- 491-517
- Citations
- 773
- Access
- Closed
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Cite This
Stephan Haggard,
Beth A. Simmons
(1987).
Theories of international regimes.
International Organization
, 41
(3)
, 491-517.
https://doi.org/10.1017/s0020818300027569
Identifiers
- DOI
- 10.1017/s0020818300027569