Rethinking democracy in global network governance
Norm Polysemy, Pluralism, and Agonistic Engagement
Bibliographic Data
| ID | 6431083 |
|---|---|
| Authors | Kilian Spandler (0000-0003-1507-4988, corresponding author) |
| Year | 2025 |
| Volume | 17 |
| Issue | 3 |
| Pages | 320-349 |
| Publication date | 2025-05-15 |
| Peer Reviewed | Yes |
| Open Access | Yes |
| Type | ARTICLE |
| Venue | International Theory (JOURNAL) |
| Journal identifiers | ISSN: 1752-9719 • E-ISSN: 1752-9727 |
| Publisher | Cambridge University Press (CUP) (PUBLISHER) |
| DOI | 10.1017/s1752971925000053 |
| OpenAlex | W4410411949 |
| Language | EN |
| References cited | 90 |
This article examines the democratic potential of global network governance. It critiques conventional legitimacy frameworks that focus on the institutional qualities of governance networks for evading deeper ethical questions about how to deal with diversity as a fundamental condition of global life. Drawing on contestation theory, English School pluralism, and radical democratic theory, I argue that democratic network governance thrives by embracing diverse norm interpretations and fostering agonistic engagement among its members. I illustrate how this idea can guide a critical analysis of global governance networks through a case study of humanitarian governance in Southeast Asia. I assess to what extent diverse humanitarian actors have been able to assert and practise their own interpretations of humanitarian norms, how they relate to the fact that others advance competing understandings, and whether the boundaries for legitimate norm enactments are drawn on legitimate grounds. By highlighting the ethical significance of these dynamics from a pluralist standpoint, the study offers a novel way of thinking about democracy in a world that is characterised by complex policy problems, diffuse authority, and vocal demands for recognition by an increasingly diverse array of actors
Aggression · Agonistic behaviour · Corporate governance · Democracy · Economics · Epistemology · Law and economics · Linguistics · Management · Norm (philosophy · Pluralism (philosophy · Political economy · Political science · Polysemy · Sociology · International Relations and Foreign Policy · Law · Philosophy · Psychology · Social Psychology
Global Governance
A New World Order
A Theory of Contestation
Governance Stories
Constructing Global Order
International Relations and the Problem of Difference
Building Global Democracy?
Legitimacy in Global Governance
Contestation and Constitution of Norms in Global International Relations
End of American World Order
The Global Covenant
Rules for the World
Saving Strangers
Global Governance in a World of Change
A Relational Theory of World Politics
Authoritarian Regionalism in the World of International Organizations
Public Philosophy in a New Key
Muhammadiyah and Disaster Response
Theorising International Society
Re-imagining the global humanitarian system
On Global Citizenship
The Third Force
On Global Order
Strange Multiplicity
From International to World Society
Localization is Self-Determination
Emerging Governance Architectures in Global Health
Indonesian Humanitarianism
Peremptory law, global order, and the normative boundaries of a pluralistic world
The Democratic Problems and Potentials of Network Governance
Rahmatan lil-'alamin” (A mercy to all creation)
Deciphering the landscape of international humanitarian law in the Asia-Pacific
Faith inspiration in a secular world
Networking Goes International
The Rise of International Regime Complexity
The Fragmentation of Global Governance Architectures
Things We Lost in the Fire
Theorizing Norm Diffusion Within International Organizations
A New Kind of Europe
Overcoming the Institutional Deficit of Agonistic Democracy
Storm of Violence, Surge of Struggle
Good Governance in Network Society
Beyond Effectiveness
Foreign Military Involvement in Filipino Relief Operations
Global power shifts and world order
The Legitimacy of Global Governance Institutions
Fragmentation of the International Humanitarian Order? Understanding “Cultures of Humanitarianism” in East Asia
After Liberal Hegemony
Resiliency dynamics of norm clusters
On the meaning(s) of norms
Between Banyans and battle scenes
Democracy and Governance Networks
Legitimacy and/or policy effectiveness
EU rules beyond EU borders
Struggles for Recognition
The Promise and Challenge of Global Network Governance
Activists beyond borders
The Democratic Anchorage of Governance Networks
Challenges of an Agonistic Constructivism for International Relations
Inter-National” Habermas
The Shadow of Hierarchy and New Modes of Governance
Network Analysis for International Relations
Cultural Diversity and International Order
The Ties that Bind
The Global Compact
The concept of practice in the English School
Towards a ‘pluralist’ world order
The end of global pluralism
Rethinking the life cycles of international norms
The Anarchical Society
Agency of the governed in global international relations
Pluralism, Solidarism and the Emergence of World Society in English School Theory
Researching climate justice
Global Public Policy
Network Forms of Organization
| Citation velocity | historical |
|---|---|
| Highly cited | No |