This book offers a compelling new interpretation of the proliferation of regional trade agreements (RTAs) at the end of the twentieth century. Challenging the widespread assumption that RTAs should be seen as fundamentally similar economic initiatives to pursue free trade, Francesco Duina proposes that the world is reorganizing itself into regions that are highly distinctive and enduring. With evidence from Europe, North America, and South America, he challenges our understanding of globalization, the nature of markets, and the spread of neoliberalism.


The pursuit of free trade is a profoundly social process and, as such, a unique endeavor wherever it takes place. In an unprecedented comparative analysis, the book offers striking evidence of differences in the legal architectures erected to standardize the worldview of market participants and the reaction of key societal organizations--interest groups, businesses, and national administrations--to a broader marketplace. The author gives special attention to developments in three key areas of economic life: women in the workplace, the dairy industry, and labor rights. With its bold and original approach and its impressive range of data, The Social Construction of Free Trade represents a major advance in the growing fields of economic sociology and comparative regional integration.

Francesco Duina is Assistant Professor of Sociology at Bates College and Visiting Professor at the International Center for Business and Politics, Copenhagen Business School. He is the author of Harmonizing Europe: Nation States within the Common Market.

List of Figures and Tables ix
A Note on Translations xi
Acknowledgments xiii
Abbreviations xvii


Part I: Introduction and Theoretical Framework

Chapter One: Visions of Free Trade 3
Chapter Two: Institutions, Politics, and the Making of Regional Markets 29


Part II: The Evolution of Law and Society in the EU, Mercosur, and NAFTA

Chapter Three: The Use of Regional Law to Standardize Reality 63
Chapter Four: The Targets and Content of Regional Law 101
Chapter Five: Societal Adjustments to Integration 148


Part III: Conclusion

Chapter Six: Reflections on the Present and Future 185


Appendix 211
References 217
Index 241