The World Trade Organization at Work: Performance in a Member-Driven Milieu

Elsig, Manfred (2010). The World Trade Organization at Work: Performance in a Member-Driven Milieu. Review of International Organizations, 5(3), pp. 345-363. Boston, Mass.: Springer US; http://www.springer-ny.com 10.1007/s11558-010-9093-2

Preview

Text ElsigRIO.pdf - Published Version Available under License Publisher holds Copyright. Download (263kB) | Preview

This article discusses performance in the context of the World Trade Organization (WTO). Applying the framework by Gutner and Thompson and inspired by principal-agent theory, it is argued that existing studies have underspecified the institutional milieu that affects performance. The WTO represents a member-driven organization where Members are part of the international organization (IO) (e.g., through rule-making) and at the same time act outside the IO (e.g., through implementation). Thus, a narrow reading of the IO (focusing on the civil servants and the Director-General and his staff) will not suffice to understand IO performance in the WTO context. Selected evidence is presented to illustrate aspects of the WTO’s inner-working and the institutional milieu of performance. In addition, the article discusses a number of performance parameters, including the relationship between Secretariat autonomy and performance, the role of information, and the mechanisms of performance aggregation. The article ends by cautioning against quick fixes to the system to improve performance.

Interest & Impact

Downloads

384 since deposited on 04 Oct 2013
77 in the past 12 months

Citations

5 Citations in Web of Science ®
6 Citations in Scopus

Search

in Google Scholar™

Services

Actions (login required)

Edit item

Actions (login required)

Edit item