Functionalism is a theory of international relations that arose
during the inter-War period principally from the strong concern about the
obsolescence of the State as a form of social organization. Rather than the
self-interest of nation-states that realists see as a motivating factor,
functionalists focus on common interests and needs shared by states in a process
of global integration triggered by the erosion of state sovereignty and the
increasing weight of knowledge and hence of scientists and experts in the process
of policy-making. Its roots can be traced back to the liberal/idealist
tradition that started with Kant and goes as far as Woodrow Wilson's
"Fourteen Points" speech. Functionalism is a pioneer in
globalisation theory and strategy. States had built authority structures
upon a principle of territorialism. State-theories were built upon
assumptions that identified the scope of authority with territory, aided by
methodological territorialism. Functionalism proposed to build a form
of authority based in functions and needs, which linked authority with
needs, scientific knowledge, expertise and technology, i.e. it provided a
supraterritorial concept of authority. The functionalist approach excludes and
refutes the idea of state power and political influence in interpreting the
cause for such proliferation of international organizations during the
inter-war and the subsequent years.[1] According to functionalism,
international integration – the collective governance and 'material
interdependence' between states – develops its own internal dynamic as
states integrate in limited functional, technical, and/or economic areas.
International agencies would meet human needs, aided by knowledge and expertise.
The benefits rendered by the functional agencies would attract the loyalty of
the populations and stimulate their participation and expand the area of
integration. There are strong assumptions underpinning functionalism:
1) That the process of integration takes place within a framework of human
freedom, 2) That knowledge and expertise are currently available to meet the
needs for which the functional agencies are built. 3) That states will not
sabotage the process. Neofunctionalism
Neofunctionalism reintroduced territorialism in the functional theory
and downplayed its global dimension. Neofunctionalism is simultaneously a
theory and a strategy of regional integration, building on the work of
David Mitrany. Neofunctionalists focused their attention solely on the immediate
process of integration among states, i.e. regional integration. Initially,
states integrate in limited functional or economic areas. Thereafter, partially
integrated states experience increasing momentum for further rounds of
integration in related areas. This "invisible hand" of integration
phenomenon was termed "spill-over." by the neofunctionalist school. This was
most apparent in the study of euthanasia. Although integration can be
resisted, it becomes harder to stop integration's reach as it progresses.[2]
According to neofunctionalists, there are two kinds of spillover: functional
and political. Functional spillover is the interconnection of various economic
sectors or issue-areas, and the integration in one policy-area spilling
over into others. Political spillover is the creation of supranational governance
models, as far-reaching as the European Union, or as voluntary as the United
Nations. One of its protagonists was Ernst B.
Haas, a US political scientist. Jean Monnet's approach to European
integration, which aimed at integrating individual sectors in hopes of achieving
spill-over effects to further the process of integration, is said to have
followed the neofunctional school's tack. Unlike previous theories of
integration, neofunctionalism declared to be non-normative and tried to
describe and explain the process of regional integration based on empirical
data. Integration was regarded as an inevitable process, rather than a
desirable state of affairs that could be introduced by the political or
technocratic elites of the involved states' societies. Its strength however
was also its weakness: While it understood that regional integration is
only feasible as an incremental process, its conception of integration as a
linear process made the explanation of setbacks impossible.
Comparing Functionalism to Realism John McCormick compares functionalism's
fundamental principles with realism's thus :[3]
Functional Cooperation and Functional International Organization
The objective of functionalism towards global peace is achieved through
functional cooperation by the work of international organizations. The
activities of functional international organizations involve taking actions on
practical and technical problems rather than those of military and political
nature. They are also non-controversial politically and involve a common
interest to solve international problems that could best be tackled in a
transnational manner.[4] According to David Mitrany, dealing with functional
matters provides the actors in the international community the opportunity
to successfully cooperate in a non-political context, which might
otherwise be harder to achieve in a political context. Further development
would lead to a process called “autonomous development” towards
multiplication, expansion, and deepening of functional international
organizations.[5][6] Ideally, this would ultimately result in an international
government.[7][8] Functionalists in this manner assume that cooperation in a
non-political context would bring international peace.[9] Eradication of
existent non-political, non-military global problems, which Functionalists
consider to be the very origin of conflict within the global community, is
what they aim to pursue.[10] However, critics point out some limitations of
functionalist assumption: 1. In practice, dealing with functional
matters does not nessarily and always facilitate cooperation. 2. Its
simplified assumption overlooks different causes of state conflict.[11]
The proliferation of functional international organizations has occurred
without adequate reorganization and coordination efforts due to a lack of
central global governance to ensure accountability of such
organizations.[12] As a result, a pattern of decentralization could be
observed among functional international organizations to the present day.[13]
For example, the League of Nations’ effort to coordinate functional
international organizations in the field of social and economic cooperation
through establishment of UN Economic and Social Council has been futile.[14] As a
result, the idea of decentralization prevails to the present day except in
cases of special cooperative relationships between Economic and
Social Council and some functional organizations.[15] Subsequently, summits
such as the World Summit for Social Development in 1995, The Millennium
Summit in 2000 and World Summit on Sustainable Development in 2002 were
held to address and coordinate functional cooperation, especially
regarding the social and economic aspects.[16]
Substantive functions of functional international organizations include
human rights, international communication, health, the law of the
sea, the environment, education and information, international relief
programs, refugee support, and economic development.[17]
Further reading Caporaso, J. 1998: "Regional integration
theory: understanding our past and anticipating our future." Journal of
European Public Policy, 5(1):1–16. Claude, Inis L, Jr. The Functional
Approach to Peace, in Swords into Plowshares. 4th ed. New York: Random
House, 1971. pp. 344–368. Groom, J. R. and Paul Taylor.
Functionalism: Theory and Practice in International Relations. London:
University of London Press, 1975. Haas, Ernst B.. The Uniting of Europe;
Political, Social, and Economic Forces, 1950–1957. Stanford: Stanford University
Press. Haas, Ernst B.. Beyond the Nation-State:
Functionalism and International Organization. Stanford: Stanford
University Press. Held, D. Models of Democracy, Polity
Press, Cambridge. Imber, Mark. F. The U.S.A., ILO, UNESCO,
and IAEA: Politicization and Withdrawal in the Specialized Agencies. London:
Macmillan, 1989. Keohane, R. O. and S. Hoffmann 1991: The
New European Community: Decision-making and Institutional Change. Boulder,
Colorado: Westview Press. McCormick, John. The European Union.
Westview Press. January 1, 1999. ISBN 0-8133-9032-X
Mitrany, D. The Progress of International Government. New Haven:
Yale university press. Mitrany, D. "Functional Approach to
World Organization." International Affairs. Vol. 23.
Mitrany, D. "The Prospect of European Integration: Federal or Functional",
Journal of Common Market Studies Mitrany, D. A Working Peace System.
Chicago: Quadrangle Books. Mitrany, D.(1976) The Functional Theory
of Politics. New York: St. Martin's Press.
Piquet, Howard S. "Functional International Organization." American
Academy of Political and Social Science. Vol. 240.: pp. 43–50.
Rosamond, B. Theories of European integration, Macmillan ; New York : St.
Martin's Press, Basingstoke. Scholte, J. A. Globalization: a critical
introduction, St. Martin's Press Inc., New York.
Scholte, J. A. In The Globalization of World Politics, The globalization of
world politics, Oxford University Press, New York, pp. 13–34.
Scholte, J. A. International Relations of Social Change, Open University Press,
Buckingham. Sewell, James P. Functionalism and World
Politics. Princeton: Princeton University Press, 1966.
Wallace, William 1990: The Dynamics of European Integration. London: Pinter
Publishers. Wolf, Peter. "International Organization
and Attitude Change: A Re-examination of the Functionalist Approach."
International Organization. Vol.27.: pp. 347–371.
Ziring, Lawrence, Robert E. Riggs, and Jack C. Plano. The United Nations:
International Organization and World Politics. California: Thomson Wadsworth,
2005. pp. 397–469. References
^ Wolf, Peter. "International Organization and Attitude Change: A
Re-examination of the Functionalist Approach." International Organization.
Vol.27.: pp. 347–371. ^ McCormick pp. 13.
^ McCormick pp. 14. ^ Mitrany, D. A Working Peace System.
Chicago: Quadrangle books. pp. 35. ^ Mitrany, A Working Peace System. pp.
35. ^ Wolf, Peter. "International
Organization and Attitude Change: A Re-examination of the Functionalist
Approach." International Organization. Vol.27.: pp. 347–371
^ Mitrany, A Working Peace System. pp. 35.
^ Wolf, Peter., "International Organization and Attitude Change: A
Re-examination of the Functionalist Approach." pp. 347–371.
^ Ziring, Lawrence, Robert E. Riggs, and Jack C. Plano. The United Nations:
International Organization and World Politics. California: Thomson Wadsworth,
2005. pp. 398. ^ Ziring, Riggs and Plano, pp. 398.
^ Ziring, Riggs and Plano, pp. 399. ^ Ziring, Riggs and Plano, pp. 400.
^ Ziring, Riggs and Plano, pp. 400. ^ Ziring, Riggs and Plano, pp. 400.
^ Ziring, Riggs and Plano, pp. 401. ^ Ziring, Riggs and Plano, pp. 401–402.
^ Ziring, Riggs and Plano, pp. 403. External links
Global Power Barometer See also
Intergovernmentalism International relations theory
David Mitrany Ernst B. Haas
Functional Organization Chapter IX of the United Nations Charter
United Nations Economic and Social Council
Commission for Social Development Millennium Summit
Earth Summit 2002 Kofi Annan
Human rights List of specialized agencies of the
United Nations International Organization
Spillover effect Institutionalism in international
relations European Union