Exporting the Homeland: Social networks and the global transformation of border control
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“Transgovernmental networks of customs and border agencies are progressively exchanging information and collaborating, either in mission-specific task forces, or by way of more enduring arrangements ... The territorially linear quality of borders is passing away in favour of increasingly connected and networked borders.”
-- Michael Pezzullo, Former Secretary of Australia Dept. Home Affairs 
Source: Author Data on Customs Mutual Assistance Agreements (CMAAs)
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This project is the first systematic account of the post-Cold War campaign to secure the transportation systems underpinning global commerce. It (1) provides new cross-national and longitudinal evidence of a global transformation in border control from a largely unilateral and territorial practice to one increasingly reliant on international cooperation and intelligence sharing, (2) explains how a transnational coalition of security agencies diffused the new border policy model, and (3) why border agencies ultimately agree to share sensitive information with some foreign peer agencies but not others.
The project advances three theoretical debates in international relations. First, it contributes to research on political authority by empirically demonstrating that a core Westphalian state function—territorial bordering—is neither waning nor simply resurgent but, rather, increasingly co-produced. This case provides evidence of decoupling between territory and political authority and movement towards a more “networked” world order, notwithstanding growing geopolitical rivalry. Second, it adds to our understanding of diffusion by illustrating how bureaucrats use formal and informal international organizations to orchestrate transgovernmental networks, bypass domestic political opposition, and spread their preferred policy models by fiat. Third, it opens new theoretical ground for research on international cooperation by showing that social network structure is an important source of information about trustworthiness which, under specific configurations, improves cooperation problems. Methodologically, the project combines a range of quantitative and qualitative tools, including inferential network analysis on new observational data, process tracing, and elite interviews.
The project advances three theoretical debates in international relations. First, it contributes to research on political authority by empirically demonstrating that a core Westphalian state function—territorial bordering—is neither waning nor simply resurgent but, rather, increasingly co-produced. This case provides evidence of decoupling between territory and political authority and movement towards a more “networked” world order, notwithstanding growing geopolitical rivalry. Second, it adds to our understanding of diffusion by illustrating how bureaucrats use formal and informal international organizations to orchestrate transgovernmental networks, bypass domestic political opposition, and spread their preferred policy models by fiat. Third, it opens new theoretical ground for research on international cooperation by showing that social network structure is an important source of information about trustworthiness which, under specific configurations, improves cooperation problems. Methodologically, the project combines a range of quantitative and qualitative tools, including inferential network analysis on new observational data, process tracing, and elite interviews.