as a social structure,an economic structure,and a political structure;and it cannot be simply one of these things but must be all three.World hegemony, furthermore,is expressed in universal norms,institutions and mechanisms which lay down general rules of behaviour for states and for those forces of civil society that act across national boundaries-rules which support the dominant mode of production. The Mechanisms of Hegemony:International Organisations One mechanism through which the universal norms of a world hegemony are expressed is the international organisation.Indeed,international organisation functions as the process through which the institutions of hegemony and its ideology are developed.Among the features of international organisation which express its hegemonic role are the following:(1)they embody the rules which facilitate the expansion of hegemonic world orders;(2)they are themselves the product of the hegemonic world order;(3)they ideologically legitimate the norms of the world order;(4)they co-opt the elites from peripheral countries and (5)they absorb counter-hegemonic ideas. International institutions embody rules which facilitate the expansion of the dominant economic and social forces but which at the same time permit adjust- ments to be made by subordinated interests with a minimum of pain.The rules governing world monetary and trade relations are particularly significant.They are framed primarily to promote economic expansion.At the same time they allow for exceptions and derogations to take care of problem situations.They can be revised in the light of changed circumstances.The Bretton Woods institutions provided more safeguards for domestic social concerns like unemployment than did the gold standard,on condition that national policies were consistent with the goal of a liberal world economy.The current system of floating exchange rates also gives scope for national actions while maintaining the principle of a prior commitment to harmonise national policies in the interests of a liberal world economy. International institutions and rules are generally initiated by the state which establishes the hegemony.At the very least they must have that state's support. The dominant state takes care to secure the acquiescence of other states accord- ing to a hierarchy of powers within the inter-state structure of hegemony.Some second-rank countries are consulted first and their support is secured.The con- sent of at least some of the more peripheral countries is solicited.Formal partici- pation may be weighted in favour of the dominant powers as in the International Monetary Fund and World Bank,or it may be on a one-state-one-vote basis as in most other major international institutions.There is an informal structure of influence reflecting the different levels of real political and economic power which underlies the formal procedures for decisions. International institutions perform an ideological role as well.They help define policy guidelines for states and to legitimate certain institutions and practices at the national level.They reflect orientations favourable to the dominant social and economic forces.The OECD,in recommending monetarism,endorsed a domi- nant consensus of policy thinking in the core countries and strengthened those who were determined to combat inflation this way against others who were more concerned about unemployment.The ILO,by advocating tripartism,legitimates 172 Downloaded from mil.s at LIB SHANGHAI JIAOTONG UNIV on Oclober 10,2010Downloaded from mil.sagepub.com at LIB SHANGHAI JIAOTONG UNIV on October 10, 2010