This book illuminates the central role played by international nongovernmental organizations (INGOs) in the emergence and development of a comprehensive world polity. The contributors argue that the enormous proliferation of INGOs since 1875--including international environmental organizations, human rights groups, bodies formed to regulate technical standards, and economic development organizations, among others--both reflects and contributes to the spread of global institutions and cultural principles based on models of rationality, individualism, progress, and universalism. The contributors contrast this world-polity perspective to other approaches to understanding globalization, including realist and neo-realist analyses in the field of international relations, and world-system theory and interstate competition theory in sociology.>

Introduction John Boli and George M. Thomas; Part I. International Nongovernmental Organizations in the World Polity: 1. INGOs and the organization of world culture John Boli and George M. Thomas; 2. National participation in world-polity organization John Boli, Thomas A. Loya and Teresa Loftin; Part II. Social Movement Sectors: 3. The rationalization and organization of nature in world culture David John Frank, Ann Hironaka, John W. Meyer, Evan Schofer, and Nancy Brandon Tuma; 4. The emergence and transformation of the International Women's Movement Nitza Berkovitch; 5. Constructing a global identity: the role of Esperanto Young S. Kim; 6. Rules of war and wars of rules: the International Red Cross and the restraint of state violence Martha Finnemore; Part III. Technical, Scientific, and Development Sectors: 7. Standardization in the world polity: technical rationality over power Thomas A. Loya and John Boli; 8. Population control for national development: from world discourse to national policies Deborah Barrett and David John Frank; 9. Development INGOs Colette Chabbott; 10. Science Associations in the international sphere, 1875-1990: the rationalization of science and the scientization of society Evan Schofer; Conclusion: world authority structures and legitimations John Boli; Notes; References; Index.