Political trilemma of the world economy
Political responses to globalisation
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The political trilemma of the world economy is a concept created by economist Dani Rodrik to capture the trade-offs that governments faced in their responses to globalization.[1][2][3][4][5] The trilemma holds that "democracy, national sovereignty and global economic integration are mutually incompatible: we can combine any two of the three, but never have all three simultaneously and in full."[6] According to Rodrik, in the late 20th century, states embraced globalization and national autonomy, and sacrificed democratic decision-making,[7] while in the post-World War II period, states embraced democracy at home and national autonomy, and sacrificed globalization.[7] The trilemma suggests that the backlash against globalization in the last few decades is rooted in a desire to reclaim democracy and national autonomy, even if it undermines economic integration.[7] Rodrik first presented the trilemma in a 2000 paper.[8]
According to The Economist, one rebuttal to the trilemma is found in Albert Hirschman's writings.[9] Hirschman observed that diversification of trade (global economic integration) could bolster national sovereignty by making it harder for a state to be coerced by any other single state.[9]
