International Organizations and Global Internet Governance: Interorganizational Architecture

Abstract

Research in the field of global Internet governance has grown dramatically in the last several decades (see, e.g., Mueller, Mathiason, and Klein, 2007; Malcolm 2008; Mueller 2004, 2010; Levinson and Cogburn, 2011a; Brousseau et al., 2012; Levinson 2012a; Epstein, 2013; Pavan, 2013; DeNardis, 2009, 2014). There is also a large range of issue areas studied and a similarly large range of scholarly journals in which such work appears. Rooted in a number of different disciplines, studies have used political science, sociological, anthropological, psychological, economic, and legal concepts to frame their work. Much of the work has focused on the role of nation-states. More recently, other work examines the rise of what is termed “multistakeholderism,” the involvement of nonstate as well as state actors in Internet governance and the rise of new institutions such as the Internet Governance Forum (IGF). International organizations are often not explicitly included in listings of stakeholders.