Taking Populism Seriously: A Focus on Global Economy and the International Organizations

Abstract

The focus of this article is to explore the role of populism as a defining feature of the geo-political landscape in the 21st century. This review article examines the theories of populism exclusively and investigates the effects of populists’ backlash against the global economy and international organizations. By engaging in an in-depth review of the literature on the subject, this essay analyzes the various forms of populist backlashes against international organizations. First, I observed the various conceptualizations of populism and adopted the use of Qualitative Data Analysis software to analyze the contents of speeches and political statements of some populist leaders around the world. Second, this essay developed three ideal types of populism and illustrates the condition under which each of these typologies can exist or co-exist. Third, I assess the current literature on the populist backlash against international organizations and argue that although nationalism plays an essential role in the right-wing populist parties and governments in Europe, it is insufficient to explain the backlashes against the global economy and international organizations. Fourth, I combined the theories of populism with the literature on the backlash against international organizations and proposed three forms of backlash available to populist governments. Lastly, I developed a framework for the interaction between the three typologies of populism and these forms of backlashes. I concluded that compliance problems have increased in the face of the current waves of populism.