Institutional Change and Conflict Regulation: The Anglo-Irish Agreement (1985) and the Mechanisms of Change in Northern Ireland

West European Politics 34 (4), pp. 838-858, July 2011

38 Pages Posted: 20 Jul 2012

See all articles by Jennifer Todd

Jennifer Todd

University College Dublin (UCD) - School of Politics and International Relations, Dublin

Date Written: 2011

Abstract

This article uses historical institutionalist theory to assess the impact of the Anglo-Irish Agreement of 1985 - often seen as the first step towards gradualist change in the role of the state in Northern Ireland. It uses new data to show how the elites who initiated the process conceived of it and to identify the mechanisms producing change. The study shows that the mechanisms of institutional change identified in comparative studies of industrial policy and welfare state development are also to be found in processes of intergovernmental ethnic conflict regulation. In turn, it highlights a mechanism of institutional change - ‘wedging’ - not discussed in the literature.

Keywords: Institutional change, Historical Institutionalism, Northern Ireland, Anglo-Irish Agreement, conflict regulation

Suggested Citation

Todd, Jennifer, Institutional Change and Conflict Regulation: The Anglo-Irish Agreement (1985) and the Mechanisms of Change in Northern Ireland (2011). West European Politics 34 (4), pp. 838-858, July 2011, Available at SSRN: https://ssrn.com/abstract=2113354

Jennifer Todd (Contact Author)

University College Dublin (UCD) - School of Politics and International Relations, Dublin ( email )

Belfield
Dublin, 4
Ireland

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