International Regime Complexity and Regional Governance

Evidence from the Americas

Bibliographic Data

ID12430494
AuthorsLaura Gómez-Mera, Laura Gómez‐mera (0000-0002-8432-5296, corresponding author)
Year2015
Volume21
Issue1
Pages19-42
Publication date2015-08-19
Peer ReviewedYes
Open AccessNo
TypeARTICLE
VenueGlobal Governance A Review of Multilateralism and International Organizations (JOURNAL)
Journal identifiersISSN: 1075-2846 • E-ISSN: 1942-6720
PublisherLynne Rienner Publishers (PUBLISHER • US)
DOI10.1163/19426720-02101004
OpenAlexW1136981947
LanguageEN
Citations received29
References cited10

In recent years, the Americas have witnessed an unprecedented surge in the number and scope of regional integration agreements, resulting in a complex “spaghetti bowl” of trade and economic relations. What are the consequences of this proliferation of overlapping and parallel institutional commitments among countries in the region? How has this increasing regime complexity affected the dynamics of cooperation among Latin American countries? And what does the case of overlapping regional agreements in the Americas tell us about the effects of regime complexity on regional governance? Drawing on the literature on international regime complexity, I identify three mechanisms through which the proliferation of regional agreements have undermined the effectiveness of cooperation in the Americas: by introducing legal fragmentation and rule ambiguity; by facilitating cross-institutional political strategies that allow countries to behave in opportunistic ways; and through competition and other feedback effects th

Ambiguity · Competition (biology · Corporate governance · Economics · International law · International relations · International trade · Latin Americans · Multilateralism · Political science · Politics · Scope (computer science · International Development and Aid · International Relations and Foreign Policy · Law · Political Conflict and Governance

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