The Power of Human Rights: International Norms and Domestic Change

Description

This book celebrates the fiftieth anniversary of the United Nation's passage of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights by showing how global human rights norms have influenced national government practices in eleven different countries around the world. Transnational human rights pressures and policies have made a significant difference in bringing about improvements in human rights practices in diverse countries around the world. The book describes a model of socialization processes that can be broadly applied to other processes and policy areas where global ideas have an impact on domestic affairs.

"A sophisticated inquiry into when and how international human rights norms change state behavior, tracing the way transnational advocacy groups, international organizations, Western states, and domestic opposition groups interact to put pressure on offending governments...draws useful lessons for policymakers and advocates alike, stressing the importance of carrot, sticks, and the combined efforts of the world community." Foreign Affairs "The authors' spiral model provides a substantial contribution to the study of human rights norms and practices..." Gerald Pace, Global Justice "^UThe Power of Human Rights effectively melds group construction and testing, using interesting case studies by a group of younger specialists." Choice "The Power of Human Rights is a sophisticated and important book...the most complete and thought-provoking theory of political behavior in relation to human rights." American Political Science Review