Kal’s comment raises some interesting questions about the nature of international law and what it means to be a treaty rather than soft law. He juxtaposes hard law and soft law, as I did in my opening comments. Let me suggest another comparison – hard law in the international context and domestic law. The contrast here is...
The conversation thus far has been interesting, but I want to bring up some new issues that we have not yet discussed. I have long been interested in how international agreements work, in part because since the end of the Second World War (at least) international agreements have been the most significant source of international law, and in part...
I confess that I am a little surprised by the focus on methodological issues that has emerged in the discussion of my book. My intention was to adopt non-controversial rational choice assumptions widely used across both law and the social sciences. This approach to modeling behavior is dominant, for example, in both economics and political science. Equally...
I thank everybody for their comments regarding the reputational posts. I think this conversation has been excellent up to now and hope this post will add some substance as we approach, what seems to me, to be some agreement regarding the reputational element of rational choice. Before I begin, let me also be clear about my terminology. I agree...
Thank to Jeff for this thought provoking comment and his kind words about my book. I am not sure that my response addresses all his concerns, but I hope it at least speaks to some of them! Let me first state that while I agree with much of what Jeff has stated in his post, I do not agree when...
How International Law Works [HILW] is a terrific book. For current purposes, I am less interested in the specifics of Andrew’s arguments than I am in his larger project – the explanation of international law in rational choice/game theoretic terms. HILW employs standard rational choice assumptions, for example, that states “are rational, self-interested, and able to identify and...
I think the discussion of rational choice explanations for human rights treaties has become a little muddled due to a lack of clarity in terminology. In particular, two terms need to be clarified. First, a “rational choice” approach implies an approach in which states have preferences which are complete, transitive, and stable. In my book and in...
Let me just offer a quick additional reflection on the question of whether rational choice theory may help explain the conundrum of why states sign human rights treaties. The easiest explanation is when the human rights commitment is bundled together with other provisions in a treaty, and the cost of making the human rights commitment is offset by other benefits derived...
Alex Geisinger’s thoughtful comments return to some of the themes I touched on in my earlier response to Roger Alford. Alex is more forceful, however, challenging whether the theory I advance is able to account for the role of reputation in treaty formation. I think the place to begin here is some terminology. The use of the...
I’d like to thank everyone involved for having me. I, too, look forward to an engaging discussion. Let me state from the outset that I agree with Professor Guzman regarding the nature of the debate. I believe there are interesting things to be learned from rational choice approaches as well as from constructivist and other approaches to international law. I have...
Thanks, Roger, for these great comments. You have put your finger on the broad area of international law that presents perhaps the greatest puzzle for all our theories of international law and international relations – human rights and humanitarian law. Agreements in these areas are (usually) very difficult to characterize as quid-pro-quo exchanges in which each party accepts...
Guzman’s book is an extremely useful addition to the literature, offering a rational choice explanation for compliance with international law. I think his three Rs of compliance (retaliation, reciprocity, and reputation) accurately reflect the best arguments for why states comply with international law. But as I was reading the book I was struck by the fact that none of the...
