Inter-institutional Cooperation in Global Governance: Why Do Intergovernmental Organizations Participate in Transnational Public-Private Governance Initiatives?

This paper examines the participation of intergovernmental organizations (IGOs) in transnational public-private governance initiatives (TGIs). In TGIs, IGOs cooperate with governments, business, and civil society organizations to address global or transnational problems. However, not all IGOs become involved in TGIs, and those who do participate vary in the extent of their involvement as well as the types of initiatives they join. Using the Transnational Public-Private Governance Initiatives in World Politics Data, I empirically map the variation of IGO involvement in 636 TGIs created in the period between 1885 and 2017. I develop theoretical explanations for the observed variation and empirically probe the explanatory power of these arguments using statistical analysis on a dataset of IGO-TGI dyads. I find that organizations with larger secretariats and centralized institutional structures are more frequently involved in TGIs in general. I also find that the effect of the level of democracy among the member states of an IGO varies across types of TGIs. My findings provide an important empirical basis for advancing research on IGO orchestration, inter-organizational relations in global governance, and regime complexity.