International Organization as Technocratic Utopia

This book explores the idea of expert governance, which suggests that scientists, bureaucrats, and lawyers should manage international relations instead of politicians or diplomats. The book argues that this technocratic approach has been a persistent theme in writings about international relations since the 19th century and has gone through four phases: pioneering, utopian, dominant, and disintegrating. The promise of technocratic internationalism is its ability to transform violent and unpredictable international politics into orderly and competent public administration. Transformations in Governance is a major academic book series from Oxford University Press that focuses on the dispersion of authority from central states to supranational institutions, subnational governments, and public-private networks.

Format: Hardback
Length: 256 pages
Publication date: 12 August 2021
Publisher: Oxford University Press

Climate change and the pandemic have presented humanity with formidable challenges, leading to a renewed interest in the concept of expert governance. This book explores the notion that scientists, bureaucrats, and lawyers, rather than politicians or diplomats, should oversee international relations. It demonstrates that this technocratic approach has been a recurring theme in writings on international relations, both academic and policy-oriented, since the 19th century. The technocratic tradition of international thought unfolded in four phases, closely linked to domestic processes of modernization and rationalization. The pioneering phase, from the Congress of Vienna to the First World War, saw philosophers, law scholars, and early social scientists blend internationalism with ideals of expert governance. Between the two world wars, a utopian period emerged, characterized by visions of technocratic international organizations that would transcend territorial boundaries. In the third phase, from the 1940s to the 1960s, technocracy became the dominant paradigm in international institution-building. While this paradigm began to unravel in the 1970s, its essential elements persist to this day. The specific promise of technocratic internationalism lies in its ability to transform violent and unpredictable international politics into efficient and competent public administration. These ideas also held significant political influence, as evidenced by their impact on the League of Nations, the functional branches of the United Nations system, and the European integration project.

Transformations in Governance is a prestigious academic book series from Oxford University Press, designed to accommodate the growing field of research in comparative politics.

Weight: 544g
Dimension: 164 x 241 x 23 (mm)
ISBN-13: 9780192845573