Research question/goal:

Whereas the choice within rules refers to the impact of institutional settings on outcomes the choice of rules considers actors' initial negotiation to establish or change institutional settings. Since institutions are more durable than policies and have uncertain long-term rather than foreseeable short-term consequences, the collective problem of institutional design, however, is to provide for institutions that are expected to be efficient, effective, or even fair in the long-run. The project is concerned with the broader topic of institutional design when investigating the question of how states in international negotiation systems decide on decision-making rules in order to constrain or enhance their future cooperation. The project aims both to derive general explanations for actors' collective choice of decision-making rules and apply the model to the study of the International Seabed Authority.