IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/ucp/jlstud/doi10.1086-684298.html
   My bibliography  Save this article

The Failure of Constitutional Torture Prohibitions

Author

Listed:
  • Adam S. Chilton
  • Mila Versteeg

Abstract

The prohibition of torture is one of the most emblematic norms of the modern human rights movement, and its prevalence in national constitutions has increased steeply in the past 3 decades. Yet little is known about whether constitutional torture prohibitions actually reduce torture. In this article, we explore the relationship between constitutional torture prohibitions and torture practices by utilizing new data that correct for biases in previous measures of torture and a recently developed method that mitigates selection bias by incorporating information about countries' constitutional commitments into our research design. Using these new data and this new method, as well as more conventional data sources and methods, we find no evidence that constitutional torture prohibitions have reduced rates of torture in a statistically significant or substantively meaningful way.

Suggested Citation

  • Adam S. Chilton & Mila Versteeg, 2015. "The Failure of Constitutional Torture Prohibitions," The Journal of Legal Studies, University of Chicago Press, vol. 44(2), pages 417-452.
    • Handle: RePEc:ucp:jlstud:doi:10.1086/684298
    DOI: 10.1086/684298
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: http://dx.doi.org/10.1086/684298
    Download Restriction: Access to the online full text or PDF requires a subscription.
    File URL: http://dx.doi.org/10.1086/684298
    Download Restriction: Access to the online full text or PDF requires a subscription.
    File URL: https://libkey.io/10.1086/684298?utm_source=ideas
    LibKey link: if access is restricted and if your library uses this service, LibKey will redirect you to where you can use your library subscription to access this item
    ---><---

    As the access to this document is restricted, you may want to search for a different version of it.

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Mila Versteeg, 2015. "Law versus Norms: The Impact of Human-Rights Treaties on National Bills of Rights," Journal of Institutional and Theoretical Economics (JITE), Mohr Siebeck, Tübingen, vol. 171(1), pages 87-111, March.
    2. Hill, Daniel W. & Jones, Zachary M., 2014. "An Empirical Evaluation of Explanations for State Repression," American Political Science Review, Cambridge University Press, vol. 108(3), pages 661-687, August.
    3. Joshua D. Angrist & Jörn-Steffen Pischke, 2009. "Mostly Harmless Econometrics: An Empiricist's Companion," Economics Books, Princeton University Press, edition 1, number 8769.
    4. Poe, Steven C. & Tate, C. Neal, 1994. "Repression of Human Rights to Personal Integrity in the 1980s: A Global Analysis," American Political Science Review, Cambridge University Press, vol. 88(4), pages 853-872, December.
    5. Leonard Wantchekon & Andrew Healy, 1999. "The “Game†of Torture," Journal of Conflict Resolution, Peace Science Society (International), vol. 43(5), pages 596-609, October.
    6. Kristian Gleditsch, 2004. "A Revised List of Wars Between and Within Independent States, 1816-2002," International Interactions, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 30(3), pages 231-262, July.
    7. Honaker, James & King, Gary & Blackwell, Matthew, 2011. "Amelia II: A Program for Missing Data," Journal of Statistical Software, Foundation for Open Access Statistics, vol. 45(i07).
    8. Christian Davenport, 1999. "Human Rights and the Democratic Proposition," Journal of Conflict Resolution, Peace Science Society (International), vol. 43(1), pages 92-116, February.
    9. Carlisle Rainey, 2014. "Arguing for a Negligible Effect," American Journal of Political Science, John Wiley & Sons, vol. 58(4), pages 1083-1091, October.
    10. Fariss, Christopher J., 2014. "Respect for Human Rights has Improved Over Time: Modeling the Changing Standard of Accountability," American Political Science Review, Cambridge University Press, vol. 108(2), pages 297-318, May.
    11. Ho, Daniel E. & Imai, Kosuke & King, Gary & Stuart, Elizabeth A., 2007. "Matching as Nonparametric Preprocessing for Reducing Model Dependence in Parametric Causal Inference," Political Analysis, Cambridge University Press, vol. 15(3), pages 199-236, July.
    12. Darren W. Davis & Brian D. Silver, 2004. "Civil Liberties vs. Security: Public Opinion in the Context of the Terrorist Attacks on America," American Journal of Political Science, John Wiley & Sons, vol. 48(1), pages 28-46, January.
    13. Scott Sigmund Gartner & Patrick M. Regan, 1996. "Threat and Repression: The Non-Linear Relationship between Government and Opposition Violence," Journal of Peace Research, Peace Research Institute Oslo, vol. 33(3), pages 273-287, August.
    14. Vreeland, James Raymond, 2008. "Political Institutions and Human Rights: Why Dictatorships Enter into the United Nations Convention Against Torture," International Organization, Cambridge University Press, vol. 62(1), pages 65-101, January.
    15. Benedikt Goderis & Mila Versteeg, 2012. "Human Rights Violations after 9/11 and the Role of Constitutional Constraints," The Journal of Legal Studies, University of Chicago Press, vol. 41(1), pages 131-164.
    16. Schnakenberg, Keith E. & Fariss, Christopher J., 2014. "Dynamic Patterns of Human Rights Practices," Political Science Research and Methods, Cambridge University Press, vol. 2(1), pages 1-31, April.
    17. Wilson, Sven E. & Butler, Daniel M., 2007. "A Lot More to Do: The Sensitivity of Time-Series Cross-Section Analyses to Simple Alternative Specifications," Political Analysis, Cambridge University Press, vol. 15(2), pages 101-123, April.
    18. Courtenay Ryals Conrad & Will H. Moore, 2010. "What Stops the Torture?," American Journal of Political Science, John Wiley & Sons, vol. 54(2), pages 459-476, April.
    19. Eric Neumayer, 2005. "Do International Human Rights Treaties Improve Respect for Human Rights?," Journal of Conflict Resolution, Peace Science Society (International), vol. 49(6), pages 925-953, December.
    20. Poole, Keith & Lewis, Jeffrey B. & Lo, James & Carroll, Royce, 2011. "Scaling Roll Call Votes with wnominate in R," Journal of Statistical Software, Foundation for Open Access Statistics, vol. 42(i14).
    21. Simmons, Beth A. & Hopkins, Daniel J., 2005. "The Constraining Power of International Treaties: Theory and Methods," American Political Science Review, Cambridge University Press, vol. 99(4), pages 623-631, November.
    22. Hollyer, James R. & Rosendorff, B. Peter, 2011. "Why Do Authoritarian Regimes Sign the Convention Against Torture? Signaling, Domestic Politics and Non-Compliance," Quarterly Journal of Political Science, now publishers, vol. 6(3–4), pages 275-327, November.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Citations

    Citations are extracted by the CitEc Project, subscribe to its RSS feed for this item.
    as


    Cited by:

    1. Konstantin Chatziathanasiou & Svenja Hippel & Michael Kurschilgen, 2022. "Does the Threat of Overthrow Discipline the Elites? Evidence from a Laboratory Experiment," The Journal of Legal Studies, University of Chicago Press, vol. 51(2), pages 289-320.
    2. Emanuela Carbonara & Giuseppina Gianfreda & Enrico Santarelli & Giovanna Vallanti, 2021. "The impact of intellectual property rights on labor productivity: do constitutions matter? [Research and development in the growth process]," Industrial and Corporate Change, Oxford University Press and the Associazione ICC, vol. 30(4), pages 884-904.
    3. Konstantin Chatziathanasiou & Svenja Hippel & Michael Kurschilgen, 2020. "Do rights to resistance discipline the elites? An experiment on the threat of overthrow," Munich Papers in Political Economy 08, Munich School of Politics and Public Policy and the School of Management at the Technical University of Munich.

    Most related items

    These are the items that most often cite the same works as this one and are cited by the same works as this one.
    1. Emily Hencken Ritter & Courtenay R. Conrad, 2016. "Human rights treaties and mobilized dissent against the state," The Review of International Organizations, Springer, vol. 11(4), pages 449-475, December.
    2. Courtenay R Conrad & Daniel W Hill Jr & Will H Moore, 2018. "Torture and the limits of democratic institutions," Journal of Peace Research, Peace Research Institute Oslo, vol. 55(1), pages 3-17, January.
    3. Gabriele Spilker & Tobias Böhmelt, 2013. "The impact of preferential trade agreements on governmental repression revisited," The Review of International Organizations, Springer, vol. 8(3), pages 343-361, September.
    4. Pavel Yakovlev, 2011. "The Economics of Torture," Chapters, in: Christopher J. Coyne & Rachel L. Mathers (ed.), The Handbook on the Political Economy of War, chapter 7, Edward Elgar Publishing.
    5. Spilker, Gabriele, 2013. "The Impact of Preferencial Trade Agreements on Governmental Repression Revisited," Papers 553, World Trade Institute.
    6. Kimberly R Frugé, 2019. "Repressive agent defections: How power, costs, and uncertainty influence military behavior and state repression," Conflict Management and Peace Science, Peace Science Society (International), vol. 36(6), pages 591-607, November.
    7. Brender, Agnes, 2018. "Determinants of International Arms Control Ratification," ILE Working Paper Series 17, University of Hamburg, Institute of Law and Economics.
    8. Daniela Donno & Michael Neureiter, 2018. "Can human rights conditionality reduce repression? Examining the European Union’s economic agreements," The Review of International Organizations, Springer, vol. 13(3), pages 335-357, September.
    9. Bjørnskov, Christian & Pfaff, Katharina, 2021. "Differences matter: The effect of coup types on physical integrity rights," European Journal of Political Economy, Elsevier, vol. 69(C).
    10. Thorin M. Wright, 2020. "Revisionist Conflict and State Repression," International Area Studies Review, Center for International Area Studies, Hankuk University of Foreign Studies, vol. 23(1), pages 49-72, March.
    11. Benedikt Goderis & Mila Versteeg, 2012. "Human Rights Violations after 9/11 and the Role of Constitutional Constraints," The Journal of Legal Studies, University of Chicago Press, vol. 41(1), pages 131-164.
    12. Dursun Peksen & Robert G. Blanton, 2017. "The impact of ILO conventions on worker rights: Are empty promises worse than no promises?," The Review of International Organizations, Springer, vol. 12(1), pages 75-94, March.
    13. Sara Kahn-Nisser, 2021. "For better or worse: Shaming, faming, and human rights abuse," Journal of Peace Research, Peace Research Institute Oslo, vol. 58(3), pages 479-493, May.
    14. Simon Hug & Richard Lukács, 2014. "Preferences or blocs? Voting in the United Nations Human Rights Council," The Review of International Organizations, Springer, vol. 9(1), pages 83-106, March.
    15. Sabine C Carey & Belén González, 2021. "The legacy of war: The effect of militias on postwar repression," Conflict Management and Peace Science, Peace Science Society (International), vol. 38(3), pages 247-269, May.
    16. Indra Soysa & Krishna Vadlammanati, 2013. "Do pro-market economic reforms drive human rights violations? An empirical assessment, 1981–2006," Public Choice, Springer, vol. 155(1), pages 163-187, April.
    17. Naji Bsisu & Amanda Murdie, 2022. "Interventions and repression following civil conflict," Journal of Peace Research, Peace Research Institute Oslo, vol. 59(2), pages 213-228, March.
    18. Andreas Beger & Daniel Hill Jr, 2019. "Examining repressive and oppressive state violence using the Ill-Treatment and Torture data," Conflict Management and Peace Science, Peace Science Society (International), vol. 36(6), pages 626-644, November.
    19. Soumyajit Mazumder, 2016. "Can I stay a BIT longer? The effect of bilateral investment treaties on political survival," The Review of International Organizations, Springer, vol. 11(4), pages 477-521, December.
    20. Travis B. Curtice & Daniel Arnon, 2020. "Deterring threats and settling scores: How coups influence respect for physical integrity rights," Conflict Management and Peace Science, Peace Science Society (International), vol. 37(6), pages 655-673, November.

    More about this item

    Statistics

    Access and download statistics

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:ucp:jlstud:doi:10.1086/684298. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    If CitEc recognized a bibliographic reference but did not link an item in RePEc to it, you can help with this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: Journals Division (email available below). General contact details of provider: https://www.journals.uchicago.edu/JLS .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.