What is PROM about?
Peer reviews among states are increasingly widely used as an instrument of global governance: Think about the many peer reviews of the OECD, the United Nations’ Universal Periodic Review, or about the variety of peer reviewing schemes in the European Union, such as its new rule of law peer review.
Yet, while there are many peer reviews, the results of some of them are taken more seriously by participants than others. How can this be explained?
The Peer Review Observatory Maastricht (PROM) looks at the functioning and the authority of peer reviews in various international organizations and policy fields. It conducts academic research and policy advice to interested audiences.
PROM started off with a comparative research project that ran from 2013 to 2019. It explored why some peer reviews among states acquire authority, while other peer reviewing schemes do not. We looked at six peer reviewing schemes are organized in different organizational contexts (OECD; United Nations family, WTO, Council of Europe) and in different policy areas (the fight against corruption; human rights; economic and trade policies). Read an abstract of the project here…
The project was hosted by the Faculty of Arts and Social Sciences of Maastricht University and received funding by the Netherlands Organisation for Scientific Research (Nederlandse Organisatie voor Wetenschappelijk Onderzoek — NWO) under its prestigious Innovational Research Incentive Scheme (VIDI).
Latest activity
Thomas Conzelmann presents at EDRC Seminar
On Friday, 18 January 2019, Prof. Thomas Conzelmann presents key results from the PROM research projects at a conference by the OECD. The conference is organised as seminar where participants engage with the peer review procedure in the Economic and Development Review...
Open access to article published in Global Governance
Valentina Carraro and Hortense Jongen have successfully published their research paper in the academic journal Global Governance in October 2018. The research article 'Leaving the Doors Open or Keeping Them Closed? The Impact of Transparency on the Authority of Peer...
Successful PROM concluding conference
The PROM team held the concluding project workshop on 30 and 31 August 2018 in Brussels. We welcomed high-level speakers from the OECD, the OHCHR, the WTO, from diplomatic delegations at the seats of the international organizations we research, and from the...
Book writing under way
The PROM team is currently putting together a book-length study on the project and its results. We aim to publish the book with one of the major university presses. The working title of the study: Valentina Carraro / Thomas Conzelmann / Hortense Jongen (2019): Beyond...
PROM concluding conference 30/31 August 2018 Brussels
On 30 and 31 August 2018 PROM will hold its concluding conference under the title: Peer reviews among states: Towards effective global governance? The conference will be held at the Brussels Campus of Maastricht University. It will bring together a high-level group of...
Hortense Jongen starts postdoc position
As of 1 May 2018, Hortense Jongen has moved to the University of Gothenburg School of Global Studies where she is working as a postdoctoral researcher in a team led by Prof. Jan Aart Scholte. Hortense can still be reached under the Maastricht address; alternative...