| This study addresses the question of how and why multilateral institutions change through an examination of the recent history of the World Bank. I focus on three new agendas that emerged at the Bank in the 1990s: private sector development, participation, and governance. While all three have been deemed critical to the Bank's ability to accomplish its stated goals they have been incorporated in very different ways into the activities of the institution. What is it about these issues--or about the Bank--that has led to their variable treatment? Traditional international relations (IR) approaches would point to changes in the preferences and power of member states and other actors that constitute the environment within which the Bank operates. My research suggests that such an explanation is inadequate. A more complete picture of institutional change can be arrived at by considering a different set of factors central to the field of organization theory: the formal and informal rules that govern the workings of the Bank and the norms, values, and beliefs of its staff. I maintain that these two bodies of theory can work together; while IR perspectives contribute to explaining how new issues come to the Bank's attention, organization theory provides insight into how those new issues subsequently are incorporated into practice.;This research has relevance not only for scholars, but also for the policymakers, activists, and others that make up the international development community. It speaks theoretically to ongoing debates in the IR field about the autonomy and malleability of international organizations, approaching these questions through a cross-disciplinary approach rooted in political science and sociology. In the policy arena, where U.S. participation in multilateral institutions recently has come under attack, this research should help policymakers understand how and when multilateral institutions respond to U.S. preferences and what other factors may account for their evolution, allowing them to make more informed decisions about U.S. foreign policy. Finally, World Bank leaders and activists concerned with reforming the institution can benefit from the strategies for change suggested by the cases studied here. |
