Institutional change in International Organisations: the case of Interpol

Abstract

In this dissertation the institutional development of Interpol, the crime-fighting international organisation, will be analysed, following the perspectives of constructivism and historical institutionalism. The dissertation is divided into four chapters; in the first one, the perspectives with which IOs are studied in the International Relations field of study will be presented, followed by a synthesis of the theories I chose to analyse the issue. In the second chapter, the history of international policing will be examined, with the most important forerunning experiments before the creation of Interpol. In the third chapter, the actual development of Interpol is analysed through the theories presented earlier. In the final chapter the issue of “Red notices”, the most known international wanted person notice, will be analysed; the controversy over this matter will be considered, as well as the possibility of it producing a new institutional change in the organisation.