ABSTRACT
In the final chapter, I discuss how the empirical chapters enrich our understanding of the dynamics of legitimacy that underpin supranationalism in world politics. They demonstrate that the creation of these powerful institutions is far from a functional response to the pressures of interdependence but a value-laden struggle to define the proper subject of global governance. In so doing, these cases suggest that the claim to supranational authority is contested and thus far more contingent than many theories of IOs might suggest. I also discuss the implications that the book’s findings have for our understanding of the future of supranationalism and international authority more broadly.
