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Begin New Search Topic Compliance Publication Year within 25 Years

11. Trust as state capacity: The political economy of compliance

Author:
Timothy Besley and Sacha Dray
Publication Date:
11-2022
Content Type:
Working Paper
Institution:
United Nations University
Abstract:
This paper explores the link between trust in government, policy-making, and compliance. It focuses on a specific channel whereby citizens who are convinced that a policy is worthwhile are more motivated to comply with it. This in turn reduces the government’s cost of implementing a policy and may also increase the set of feasible policies. Thus, state capacity is greater when citizens trust their government. The paper discusses alternative approaches to modelling the origins of trust, especially the link to the design of political institutions. We then provide empirical evidence consistent with the model’s findings that compliance is increasing in trust using the Integrated Values Survey and voluntary compliance during COVID-19 in the UK. We also show that countries with high levels of citizen trust in government were more likely to implement policies requiring voluntary compliance during the COVID-19 pandemic. The paper suggests that trust in government can play a role in building and expanding state capacities.
Topic:
Government, Political Economy, Capacity, Compliance, and Trust
Political Geography:
Global Focus

12. State Regulatory Compliance Processes: Lessons Learned From COVID-19

Author:
Neil Kerwin, Aretha Ferrell-Benavides, Stan Meiburg, Shelley Metzenbaum, and Courtney Phillips
Publication Date:
12-2022
Content Type:
Special Report
Institution:
The National Academy of Public Administration (NAPA)
Abstract:
Over the past 18 months, the nation’s economy and society have been upended by the COVID-19 pandemic. To protect public health while minimizing economic disruption, state and local governments took action to improve the regulatory compliance process, such as: Utilized additional online mechanisms for some regulatory compliance processes; Addressed business pain points and concerns about timeliness; and Improved sequencing and routing of regulatory approvals (for example, by allowing offices to do concurrent reviews) Supported by a grant from the Pew Charitable Trusts, the Academy's Center for Intergovernmental Partnerships analyzed states' actions related to their regulatory standards. The report discovered several main steps state governments took regarding: Simplified permitting paved the way for business start-ups; New permissions allowed bars and restaurants to resume operations; Streamlined licensing allowed healthcare professionals to continue to practice; and The authorization of telehealth allowed millions of people to receive remote healthcare services. The report noted several important implications along these investigative lines and detailed additional opportunities for research into lessons learned and preparations for future crises. See Chapter 5 of the report to read the complete conclusions and recommendations.
Topic:
Regulation, Public Health, COVID-19, Compliance, and Public Administration
Political Geography:
North America and United States of America

13. Ratification, Reservations, and Review: Exploring the Role of the CEDAW Compliance Mechanisms in Women’s Rights

Author:
Ellinore Ahlgren
Publication Date:
05-2021
Content Type:
Journal Article
Journal:
Journal of Public and International Affairs (JPIA)
Institution:
School of Public and International Affairs (SPIA), Princeton University
Abstract:
This paper examines whether frequent engagement with the Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination Against Women, the body of independent experts monitoring the implementation of the Convention of the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination Against Women, is linked to improved compliance with women’s rights commitments. It further explores whether the relationship between treaty body interaction and compliance holds for states that have made reservations to articles concerning women’s rights. Data from state reports submitted to the Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination Against Women and indicators from the Social Institutions and Gender Index show that frequent engagement with the body is associated with improved equality for women, irrespective of state reservations. The results from this study challenge the idea that reservations undermine global governance regimes and are detrimental to human rights. Finally, this paper illustrates how compliance mechanisms work using a case study from Iraq. Through participation in the report-and-review process, states engage in negotiation around contentious areas of women’s rights with experts, civil society and the public, which facilitates respect for women’s rights.
Topic:
International Relations, Civil Society, Governance, Women, Compliance, and Case Study
Political Geography:
Africa, Iraq, Middle East, and Asia-Pacific

14. Compliance in “exceptional” trade disputes: a set-theoretical approach

Author:
Rodrigo Fagundes Cezar
Publication Date:
12-2020
Content Type:
Journal Article
Journal:
Revista Brasileira de Política Internacional (RBPI)
Institution:
Instituto Brasileiro de Relações Internacionais (IBRI)
Abstract:
This article uses the Qualitative Comparative Analysis (QCA) method to examine the combinations of conditions that explain the length of World Trade Organization (WTO) disputes that invoke General Agreement on Trade and Tariffs’ (GATT) General Exceptions (Article XX). Using the Brazil-EC controversy over retreaded tires as an example, the work underscores the importance of the mobilization of civil society organizations such as NGOs and think tanks in association with power asymmetry and/or veto players. The article contributes to understanding the causal complexity and empirical heterogeneity of “exceptional” disputes (disputes in which a party invokes GATT’s General Exceptions).
Topic:
Civil Society, World Trade Organization, Domestic Politics, Trade Wars, and Compliance
Political Geography:
Global Focus

15. Get Real: A discussion paper about whether a compliance-based approach to LGBTI economic empowerment can work in South Africa

Author:
Tracy-Lynn Humby
Publication Date:
12-2019
Content Type:
Working Paper
Institution:
The Other Foundation
Abstract:
In 1996, South Africa made human rights history by being the first country in the world to prohibit unfair discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation in its constitution. But 25 years after this resounding document was passed by the Constitutional Assembly, the lived realities of most LGBTI South Africans lag well behind the constitution’s ringing promises.
Topic:
Human Rights, Employment, Discrimination, LGBT+, and Compliance
Political Geography:
Africa and South Africa

16. Power and Compliance in Rural Bhutanese Society

Author:
Fredrik Barth
Publication Date:
11-2018
Content Type:
Journal Article
Journal:
Journal of Bhutan Studies
Institution:
Centre for Bhutan & GNH Studies (CBS)
Abstract:
I am very happy to have this opportunity to discuss some questions concerning social organization and the organization of agricultural labour in Bhutanese rural society. Bhutan is an independent country in the Eastern Himalayas, about the size of Switzerland, with an overwhelmingly Buddhist population of c. 600,000 persons. Having never been under any foreign administration, and despite recent modern developments, it has maintained a high degree of isolation through most of its history. It thus offers an opportunity to study a living case of a highly distinctive form of agrarian society.
Topic:
Development, Rural, Society, Compliance, and Power
Political Geography:
South Asia and Bhutan

17. Compliance shocks under low bureaucratic capacity

Author:
Daniel Tanis
Publication Date:
03-2018
Content Type:
Working Paper
Institution:
Nottingham Interdisciplinary Centre for Economic and Political Research (NICEP)
Abstract:
There is a general consensus on the negative e€ects of corruption on state capacity and welfare, but there is little understanding of how anti-corruption initiatives a€ect other areas of policy making. This paper frames anti-corruption policies as a delegation problem and examines the e€ects of enforcement shocks on bureaucratic action. As politicians increase the oversight of the bureaucracy to ensure that their actions are more compliant, bureaucrats react to a higher risk of punishment and choose safer actions. This model shows, however, that under low policy capacity an increase in oversight may in fact distance the bureaucratic action from the political preferences if punishment is highly asymmetrical. I test this hypothesis using data from the Brazilian random audit programme and detailed records of municipal spending during 2006-2012. I show that being audited substantially increases the chances that bureaucrats will face legal sanctions for the policies they attempt to deliver, but there are no corresponding sanctions for under-delivery. As a result, I nd that a random audit increases the gap between the budget planned by politicians at the beginning of the year and the resources actually spent by bureaucrats. This is a sizable e€ect where bureaucrats spend 1.5-2% less of the average municipal budget and 10-15% less of the discretionary expenses. This e€ect is disconnected from the political cycle and the reported corruption risk. The results suggest important insights for the design of anti-corruption policies: if the size and threat of punishment is large enough, not delivering policies may be a safer strategy than risking non-compliance. Hence, combining an increase in the risk of punishment with higher incentives for policy delivery could mitigate the potential side e€ects of audit-based anti-corruption programmes.
Topic:
Corruption, Political Economy, Bureaucracy, and Compliance
Political Geography:
Brazil and Global Focus

18. A Turn to Non-State Actors: Inducing Compliance with International Humanitarian Law in War-Torn Areas of Limited Statehood

Author:
Heike Krieger
Publication Date:
10-2013
Content Type:
Working Paper
Institution:
Collaborative Research Center (SFB) 700
Abstract:
Many of the perpetuated armed conflicts in the Great Lakes Region in Africa take place in war- torn areas of limited statehood. These conflicts are characterized by a high number of civilian victims, often resulting from utter disregard for international humanitarian law. Here, the rise of armed, violent non-state actors collides with the State-centric traditional nature of public international law. Thus, (classical) compliance structures seem to lose their significance, as they predominantly rely on the State for law enforcement and therefore mainly accommodate States’ interests when inducing compliance. The working paper suggests that the international com- munity responds to these challenges by allocating competences to other actors than the State. Particularly, international organizations increasingly contribute to enforcing international hu- manitarian law. However, since these organizations are dependent on their member States’ political willingness to support measures for inducing compliance effectively, a proliferation of humanitarian non-state actors can be observed that step in where third States and international organizations are reluctant to act. The paper investigates reasons for compliance and arrives at the conclusion that traditional motives rooted in a logic of consequences, as well as appropriate- ness are still valid and must therefore be addressed by the corresponding compliance mecha- nisms. These compliance mechanisms are interdependent and mutually reinforcing. Persuasion and incentives work more effectively if they are used under a shadow of hierarchy thrown by coercive legal enforcement instruments, such as international criminal justice and UN targeted sanctions. These instruments are in turn more effective if they are part of a concerted effort.
Topic:
Non State Actors, Governance, International Humanitarian Law (IHL), Statehood, and Compliance
Political Geography:
Africa

19. Engaging a Nuclear India: Punishment, Reward, and the Politics of Non-Proliferation

Author:
Richard Bruneau
Publication Date:
05-2006
Content Type:
Journal Article
Journal:
Journal of Public and International Affairs (JPIA)
Institution:
School of Public and International Affairs (SPIA), Princeton University
Abstract:
This paper addresses India’s claim that it is a “responsible nuclear power” and assesses recent changes in the international response to India’s nuclear status. It fi nds that despite India’s outsider status with respect to the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT) and various export control regimes, it has maintained a very strong non-proliferation record. The decisions by the United States and Canada in 2005 to renew nuclear cooperation with India have recognized this, but, in so doing, have potentially undermined the legitimacy of the NPT. In reality, however, the primary mechanisms for infl uencing states’ decisions to cross the nuclear threshold lie outside the NPT and can be strengthened through Indian participation. The path set by renewed cooperation with India is an uncertain one, but its pragmatic approach based on compliance behavior is likely a more credible and effective foundation than the illusions of the NPT.
Topic:
Nuclear Weapons, Treaties and Agreements, Nonproliferation, and Compliance
Political Geography:
South Asia and India