TY  - JOUR
A1  - Liese, Andrea
A1  - Herold, Jana
A1  - Feil, Hauke
A1  - Busch, Per-Olof
T1  - The heart of bureaucratic power
T2  - Review of international studies : RIS
N2  - Expert authority is regarded as the heart of international bureaucracies' power. To measure whether international bureaucracies' expert authority is indeed recognised and deferred to, we draw on novel data from a survey of a key audience: officials in the policy units of national ministries in 121 countries. Respondents were asked to what extent they recognised the expert authority of nine international bureaucracies in various thematic areas of agricultural and financial policy. The results show wide variance. To explain this variation, we test well-established assumptions on the sources of de facto expert authority. Specifically, we look at ministry officials' perceptions of these sources and, thus, focus on a less-studied aspect of the authority relationship. We examine the role of international bureaucracies' perceived impartiality, objectivity, global impact, and the role of knowledge asymmetries. Contrary to common assumptions, we find that de facto expert authority does not rest on impartiality perceptions, and that perceived objectivity plays the smallest role of all factors considered. We find some indications that knowledge asymmetries are associated with more expert authority. Still, and robust to various alternative specifications, the perception that international bureaucracies are effectively addressing global challenges is the most important factor.
KW  - Expert Authority
KW  - International Bureaucracies
KW  - International
KW  - Organisations
KW  - Neutrality
KW  - Performance
KW  - Survey
Y1  - 2021
UR  - https://publishup.uni-potsdam.de/frontdoor/index/index/docId/56633
SN  - 0260-2105
SN  - 1469-9044
VL  - 47
IS  - 3
SP  - 353
EP  - 376
PB  - Cambridge Univ. Press
CY  - Cambridge
ER  -