Krzysztof Pelc
Lester B. Pearson Professor of International Relations at Oxford University, member of the DPIR, and Professorial Fellow at St-Anne's College.
My research examines the international political economy. I'm especially interested by how the design of rules can affect the odds of cooperation between states, and how some rules benefit some countries over others. This has led me to write about participation in international institutions, privacy and publicity, the effects of (il)legitimacy on political outcomes, optimal ambiguity, the impact of hard times on cooperation, precedent in public international law, whether workers can be compensated for losses from globalization, and the circumstances under which governments are allowed to break formal rules.
The unifying theme of this work is the idea of credibility. Being believed is the most valuable asset in both political and commercial markets. So how do market actors and political leaders get others to believe they are reliable types, when unreliable types abound?
I received my PhD from Georgetown University, and spent my postdoc at Princeton' Niehaus Center. I then taught at McGill University for over a decade. I have been a visiting professor at NYU, the Jawaharlal Nehru Institute of Advanced Studies in New Delhi, and the University of Copenhagen. I was awarded the 2017 McGill's Faculty of Arts Award for Distinction in Research.
My most recent book is "Beyond Self-Interest: Why the Market Rewards Those Who Reject It", with Oxford Press and Bloomsbury
in which I argue that the true idols of market society are those who deny their self-interest, or appear to do so. Trouble ensues.
Read the review in the Financial Times, and the Toronto Star.
I was the winner of the Financial Times 2021 Essay Prize on the occasion of the Political Economy Club's bicentenary.
I occasionally write fiction, and was the 2019 winner of Canada's
CBC Short Story Prize.
Contact: krzysztof.pelc_at_politics.ox.ac.uk
Link to CV
Publications
• Kim, Sung Eun and Krzysztof Pelc. "Does Political Diversity Inhibit Blood Donations?" Perspectives on Politics, forthcoming.
• Kim, Sung Eun and Krzysztof Pelc. "Taking One for the (Other) Team: Does Political Diversity Lower Vaccination Uptake?" Political Behavior, forthcoming.
• Pauwelyn, Joost and Krzysztof Pelc. 2022. "Who Guards the ‘Guardians of the System’? The Role of the Secretariat in WTO Dispute Settlement". American Journal of International Law. 116(3): 534-566.
Follow-up Symposium in AJIL Unbound.
• Pauwelyn, Joost and Krzysztof Pelc. 2022. "WTO Rulings and the Veil of Anonymity". European Journal of International Law. Pre-pub version.
Follow-up posts in EJIL Talk!:
—"The WTO Secretariat’s ‘Open Secret’: Unpacking the Controversy"
—"Does It Matter Who Writes Legal Rulings? It Depends."
• Kerner, Andrew and Krzysztof Pelc. 2022. Do Investor-State Disputes (Still) Harm FDI?" British Journal of Political Science. 52(2), 781-804.
• Pelc, Krzysztof. 2022. Counterfactuals and Contingency in WTO Dispute Settlement History. World Trade Review, 1(11).
• Kim, Sung Eun and Krzysztof Pelc. 2021. "The Politics of Trade Adjustment vs. Trade Protection". Comparative Political Studies. 54(13).
Dataverse. Media coverage. SSRN.
• Kim, Sung Eun and Krzysztof Pelc. 2021. "How Responsive is Trade Adjustment Assistance?" Political Science Research and Methods. 9(4):889-898.
Replications materials. First View.
• Kim, Sung Eun and Krzysztof Pelc. 2021. "Trade Competition and Worker Compensation: Why Do Some Receive More than Others?" International Studies Quarterly, 65(1): 109–121. SSRN.
• Pelc, Krzysztof. 2020. "Can COVID-era Export Restrictions Be Deterred?" Canadian Journal of Political Science. 53(2):349-356.
• Pelc, Krzysztof. 2020. "An Economic Recipe for Backlash". Research in Political Sociology. 27:131-147.
• Castle, Matthew and Krzysztof Pelc. 2019. "The Causes and Effects of Leaks in International Negotiations." International Studies Quarterly. 63(4):1147-1162.
• Busch, Marc L. and Krzysztof Pelc. 2019. "Words Matter: How International Courts Handle Political Controversy". International Studies Quarterly. 63(2): 464–476.
• Johns, Leslie, Krzysztof Pelc and Rachel Wellhausen. 2019. "How a Retreat from Global Economic Governance May Empower Business Interests". Journal of Politics. 81(2): 731-738.
• Johns, Leslie and Krzysztof Pelc. 2018."Free-Riding on Enforcement in the WTO". Journal of Politics. 80(3): 873-889. Replication Materials.
• Arel-Bundock, Vincent and Krzysztof J. Pelc. 2018. "When Can Multiple Imputation Improve Regression Estimates?" Political Analysis. 26(2): 240-245.
Replication Materials. Dataverse.
• Pelc, Krzysztof. 2017. "What Explains the Low Success Rate of Investor-State Disputes?" International Organization. 71(3): 559-583.
Full ISDS dataset in .xls and .dta. Discussed on Buzzfeed. Replication Materials. Data update: full ISDS dataset.
Check UNCTAD's website for up-to-date data.
• Daku, Mark and Krzysztof J. Pelc. 2017. "Who Holds Influence Over WTO Jurisprudence?" Journal of International Economic Law. 20(2): 233–255.
• Kucik, Jeffrey and Krzysztof Pelc. 2016. "Do International Rulings Have Spillover Effects? The View from Financial Markets". World Politics. 68(4): 713-751. Replication Materials.
• Johns, Leslie and Krzysztof Pelc. 2016. “Fear of Crowds in WTO Disputes: Why Don't More Countries Participate?” Journal of Politics. 78(1): 88–104. Replication Materials.
• Kucik, Jeffrey and Krzysztof Pelc. 2016 "Measuring the Cost of Privacy: A Look at the Distributional Effects of Private Bargaining". British Journal of Political Science. 46(4):861-889.
• Chaudoin, Stephen, Jeffrey Kucik and Krzysztof Pelc. 2016. "Do WTO Disputes Actually Increase Trade?" International Studies Quarterly. 60(2): 294-306. Replication Materials.
• Kucik, Jeffrey and Krzysztof Pelc. 2016. "Over-Commitment and Backsliding in International Trade". European Journal of Political Research. 55(2): 391–415.
• Pelc, Krzysztof J. 2016. Making and Bending International Rules: The Design of Exceptions and Escape Clauses in Trade Law. New York: Cambridge University Press.
• Davis, Christina and Krzysztof Pelc. 2015. “Cooperation in Hard Times: Self-Restraint of Trade Protection”. Journal of Conflict Resolution. First Published August 6, 2015. 398–429. Replication Materials.
• Pelc, Krzysztof and Johannes Urpelainen. 2015. “When Do International Economic Agreements Allow Countries to Pay to Breach?". Review of International Organizations. 10(2):231-264.
• Pelc, Krzysztof. 2014. “The Politics of Precedent in International Law: A Social Network Application”. American Political Science Review 108(3): 547-564.
• Johns, Leslie and Krzysztof Pelc. 2014. “Who Gets to Be in the Room? Manipulating Participation in WTO Disputes.” International Organization 68(3): 663-699.
• Busch, Marc and Krzysztof Pelc. 2014. "Law, Politics, and the True Cost of Protectionism: The Choice of Trade Remedies or Binding Overhang." World Trade Review 13(1):39-64.
• Pelc, Krzysztof. 2013. "Googling the WTO: What Search Engine Data Tell Us About the Political Economy of Institutions" International Organization, 67(3): 629-655.
• Pelc, Krzysztof. 2013. “The Cost of Wiggle-Room: Considering the Welfare Effects of Flexibility in Tariff Rates at the WTO”. International Studies Quarterly, 57: 91-102.
• Pelc, Krzysztof. 2011. “Why do Some Countries Get Better WTO Accession Terms than Others?” International Organization 65(4): 639-672.
• Pelc, Krzysztof. 2011. “How States Ration Flexibility: Tariffs, Remedies, and Exchange Rates as Policy Substitutes”. World Politics 63(4): 618-646.
• Pelc, Krzysztof. 2010. “Why Do We Not See More Efficient Breach at the WTO?”, 2010. World Trade Review 9(4): 629-642.
(Winner, 2009 Cambridge Univ. Press Prize for International Economic Law)
• Pelc, Krzysztof. 2010. “Constraining Coercion? Legitimacy and Its Role in U.S. Trade Policy, 1975-2000”. International Organization 64(1): 65-96.
Discussed on the Washington Post Monkey Cage.
• Busch, Marc and Krzysztof Pelc. 2010. “The Politics of Judicial Economy at the World Trade Organization”. International Organization 64(2): 257-279.
• Pelc, Andrzej and Krzysztof Pelc. 2009. “Same Game, New Tricks: Recognizing Good Strategies in the Iterated Prisoner’s Dilemma”. Journal of Conflict Resolution 53(5): 774-793.
• Busch, Marc and Krzysztof Pelc. 2009. “Does the WTO Need a Permanent Body of Panelists?” Journal of International Economic Law 12(3): 579-594.
• Pelc, Krzysztof. 2009. Europe’s Role in China’s Transition to Superpower Status. Transition Studies Review, 16(2), pp.343-351.
• Pelc, Krzysztof. 2009. “Seeking Escape: Escape Clauses in International Trade Agreements”. International Studies Quarterly 53 (2): 349-368.
Book Chapters
• Pelc, Krzysztof. 2020. Sausage-Making at the WTO: Looking Behind the Curtain of Dispute Settlement Procedures Over Time. Forthcoming.
• Pelc, Krzysztof. 2017. "Twenty Years of Third Party Participation at the WTO: What Have We Learned?" in Assessing the World Trade Organization: Fit for Purpose?, edited by Manfred Elsig and Joost Pauwelyn. Cambridge University Press.
• Kucik, Jeffrey and Krzysztof Pelc. 2017. "What Can Financial Markets Tell Us About International Courts and Deterrence?" in International Courts and Domestic Politics, edited by Marlene Wind. Cambridge University Press.
• Pelc, Krzysztof. 2016. “The Welfare Implications of Precedent in International Law", in Establishing Judicial Authority in International Economic Law, edited by Joanna Jemielniak, Laura Nielsen and Henrik Palmer Olsen. Cambridge University Press.
• Pelc, Krzysztof. 2016. “What Would EH Carr Say? How International Institutions Address Political Change", in Accommodating Rising Powers, edited by T.V. Paul. Cambridge University Press.
• Busch, Marc and Krzysztof Pelc. 2015. “Dispute Settlement in the WTO", in The Oxford Handbook of the Political Economy of International Trade, edited by Lisa Martin. Oxford University Press.
• Busch, Marc and Krzysztof Pelc. 2011. “Ruling Not to Rule: The Use of Judicial Economy at the WTO”. in: The Politics of International Economic Law, edited by Broude et al. Cambridge University Press.
"The Twin GATT Exceptions: Fears and Solutions". 2016.
Working Papers
• ‘I Don’t Want A Bag of Money From the Government’: Public Attitudes Towards Worker Buyouts.
• "Why Do Some Workers Get Less Trade Adjustment Assistance Than Others?" (with Sung Eun Kim).
• "How Responsive is Trade Adjustment Assistance?" (with Sung Eun Kim).
• "Political Rhetoric as Trade Barrier: Trump's 'Buy American' Campaign and US Demand for Imports." (with Jeffrey Kucik)
• "Do Investor-State Disputes Harm FDI?" with Andrew Kerner.
• "Charting the Sources of Brexit: Lessons for Canada-UK Relations" Knowledge Synthesis Report, SSHRC.
And for something a little different
• "Green Velvet", a short story about immigration, furniture, and termites, and a winner of the 2019 CBC Short Story Prize. You can both read and listen to it here.
• "The Duolect", a short story about private languages, and a finalist for the 2017 CBC Short Story Prize.
• "Question & Answer", a short story in Maisonneuve Magazine (Fall 2019).
Popular Press
Weaponized Plumbing. Los Angeles Review of Books. September 2023.
AI Will Make Human Art More Valuable. Wired. March 2023.
Book Capital. Literary Review of Canada. March 2023.
Burden of Plenty. Literary Review of Canada. June 2022.
The tricky business of neutrality: Is there a cost to the disappearance of non-political spaces? Toronto Star. April 2022.
Why Leisure Time is In Danger. The Atlantic. July 2021.
A Century of Stagnation, and Other Good News. Financial Times. July 2021.
Lower economic growth does not mean less human happiness. Financial Times. July 2021.
"Wait, Wait... Don't Tell Me: The pros and cons of disclosure". Literary Review of Canada. February 2021.
"Will COVID-19 crisis unite or divide us?" Montreal Gazette. March 26, 2020.
"US Attacks on WTO Adjudicators Are Misguided". Washington Post. Monkey Cage. December 2019.
"China should demand that the US compensate American workers hurt by trade". The Hill. November 2019.
"The Canadian National Myth". Literary Review of Canada. May 2019.
"Does Bullying in International Relations Work?" Literary Review of Canada. April 2019.
"The US Broke a Global Trade Taboo. But Here's Why the US Measures May be Legal" Washington Post. Monkey Cage. June 2018.
"La guerre commerciale canadienne canado-américaine en sept questions". Le Devoir. 2 juin 2018.
"The Free Trade Malaise" Literary Review of Canada. March 2018.
"Political Rhetoric as Trade Barrier: Trump’s “Buy American” Campaign and U.S. Demand for Imports". Cato Research Briefs in Economic Policy. May 2018.
Nationalist trade agenda is producing little but costing a lot.
The Hill. February. 16, 2018.
CBC Radio: Everything you Always Wanted to Know About NAFTA. August 2017.
"Does Unilateralism Work? History Says No". Washington Post. Monkey Cage. March 7, 2017.
"Canada shouldn't throw NAFTA partner Mexico under the Trump bus". Montreal Gazette, Feb 20th, 2017.
"Are Secret Negotiations at the WTO a Problem?" (with Jeffrey Kucik). Washington Post. Monkey Cage. Jan 6th 2017.
"Le libre-échange, la plus ancienne des technologies pertubatrices". Magazine Nouveau Projet, Hiver 2016.
"What Our Dollars Fuel". New Rambler Review. 2016.
"Yes, the TPP agreement is over 5,000 pages long. Here’s why that’s a good thing." Washington Post. The Monkey Cage. August 2, 2016.
"La France a raison de s’opposer", Le Devoir. 6 juillet 2015.
"How Cotton Became a ‘World Question’". New Rambler Review. 2015.
"Why the deal to pay Brazil $300 million just to keep U.S. cotton subsidies is bad for the WTO, poor countries, and U.S. taxpayers". Washington Post. The Monkey Cage.
Recent Media
