Diffusion Across Political Systems: The Global Spread of National Human Rights Institutions

This article examines the proliferation of national human rights institutions (NHRIs) and seeks to explain the drivers of this institutional innovation across contrasting political regimes. This article suggests that the NHRI phenomenon can be attributed to increasingly sophisticated international o...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:	Human rights quarterly 2010-08, Vol.32 (3), p.729-760
Main Author:	Pegram, Thomas
Format:	Article
Language:	eng
Subjects:	Acculturation Civil rights Coercion Democracy Diffusion Expectations Freedom Human Rights Innovation Innovations Institutions International International agencies International cooperation Legal systems National human rights institutions Normativity Ombudsmen Persuasion Platform Political institutions Political regimes Political Systems Politics
Online Access:	Get full text
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Summary:	This article examines the proliferation of national human rights institutions (NHRIs) and seeks to explain the drivers of this institutional innovation across contrasting political regimes. This article suggests that the NHRI phenomenon can be attributed to increasingly sophisticated international organizational platforms and three distinct, but complementary, mechanisms of diffusion: (1) coercion, (2) acculturation, and (3) persuasion. The article argues that a powerful international process of diffusion is at work and NHRIs are no longer the exclusive preserve of liberal democratic regimes.Instead NHRIs have diffused to a wide range of political systems, subjecting these human rights institutions to new and often competing demands and expectations.
ISSN:	0275-0392 1085-794X 1085-794X