Is globalization good for democracy? Or has it made our governing institutions less accountable to citizens? Located at the intersection of international relations and comparative politics, Sperling’s latest book, Altered States: The Globalization of Accountability (Cambridge University Press), explores the effects of globalization on national governance. Under what circumstances do the transnational forces that embody globalization encourage or discourage political accountability? Among the transnational forces discussed in the book are the International Monetary Fund, the World Bank, multinational corporations, the United Nations, private military contractors, peacekeepers, the European Court of Human Rights, and several transnational social movements. The book has been named the recipient of the ISA’s Chadwick Alger book prize.
Valerie Sperling is associate professor of government at Clark University. Her research interests include state-society relations, social movements, gender politics, patriotism, and state building in the post-communist region.
Sponsored by the Kellogg Institute for International Studies and the Nanovic Institute for European Studies.