Theorizing Norm Stagnation and the Evolution of Domestic Norm Compliance

Abstract Research on international norms is increasingly motivated by their nonlinear evolution and processes of contestation and regression. We advance this work by considering how simultaneous but distinct evolutionary shifts can create diachronic gaps between global norms and national compliance. This sequence of events in which a country that demonstrably embraces a global norm fails to keep pace as the substance of the norm evolves over time is inconsistent with recent work on international norm adaptation, resistance, and backlash. We instead theorize how the degree of norm compliance in a country can diminish over time as the broader norm evolves, a process we term “norm stagnation.” We also identify two potential sources of norm stagnation: a knowledge gap and domestic gridlock. Drawing on examples from research on the sexual orientation, gender identity, and expression (SOGIE) norm, we illustrate how both knowledge gaps and domestic gridlock can contribute to the domestic adoption of a norm becoming disjointed from the global norm as the global norm shifts over time. This theory note thus contributes to research on the dynamism of and backlash against international norms.