Norm Complexity and Interactions
Caroline Fehl, Elvira Rosert · Oxford University Press eBooks · 2025
Abstract With states continuously adopting new legal instruments and amending existing ones, the network of norms spanning the globe today is becoming denser and more complex. Scholars of international norms have always emphasized that norms do not exist in isolation but are embedded in broader normative contexts—and yet, the increasing normative complexity has only very recently become a distinct research focus. This chapter reviews the recent wave of research on norm complexity, discussing its key theoretical innovations and preliminary findings, as well as the theoretical and empirical desiderata that still need to be addressed. As we show, this emerging research field has accomplished several conceptual moves, such as highlighting potentially disadvantageous norm relationships as well as the internal complexity of norms. It has also contributed fundamental theoretical findings, for instance on the role of embeddedness for the evolution and robustness of norms. We argue, however, that research on norm complexity is still in the theory-building stage, wherein further aspects of norm complexity are theorized and illustrated empirically through case studies. Consequently, in addition to outlining some theoretical challenges that can be addressed by further research, we broadly identify the need for a more cumulative production of knowledge on norm complexity.