Global Distribution of Transnational Human Rights NGOs: The Effects of Domestic Resources and Institutions

Abstract

This article examines domestic sources of the uneven distribution of human rights transnational NGOs (TNGOs) across countries. I compile an original dataset covering 787 human rights TNGOs during the 2005–2010 period from the Yearbook of International Organizations (supplemented by the directories produced by Human Rights Internet and the Encyclopedia of Associations). I employ the zero‐inflated negative binomial model to explore domestic conditions influencing the location of TNGO headquarters. The analysis distinguishes two processes. First, population size and political institutions are particularly important for the likelihood of hosting any human rights TNGOs. Human rights TNGOs are likely to exist only in strong democratic countries with relatively large populations. Second, domestic resources (economic and human) and institutions (political and regulatory) affect the count of human rights TNGOs in a country. A high level of economic development, a large and well‐educated population, strong democratic institutions, and a less regulatory environment provide favorable conditions for the establishment of more human rights TNGOs. Although human rights TNGOs are transnationally oriented, their establishment is still greatly influenced by domestic factors.