The dominant theoretical approaches that aim to explain the origins and subsequent global diffusion of modern norms, practices, and institutions have reached an impasse. World polity theory and ‘coercion’ perspectives describe a process in which norms originate in the Global North and spread to the rest of the world. For the former, diffusion occurs via the willful imitation of shared values; for the latter, it occurs due to economic/political pressure and/or force. However, both approaches are unable to account for norms that emerge in the Global South and get adopted globally. This article argues that postcolonial sociology can help overcome the common pitfalls of the existing theories and provide a theoretical framework for analyzing global diffusion through its analytical focus on subaltern agency, ‘relationalism,’ and colonial contours of power. The utility of postcolonial sociology is demonstrated using archival data and an historical analysis of the 1938 Trade Disputes (Arbitration and Inquiry) Ordinance, which emerged in Trinidad and Tobago and was subsequently adopted by a number of colonies across the British empire.

中文翻译：

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后殖民社会学作为全球扩散理论的补救措施

旨在解释现代规范、实践和制度的起源和随后的全球传播的主流理论方法已陷入僵局。世界政治理论和“强制”观点描述了规范起源于全球北方并传播到世界其他地区的过程。对于前者，传播是通过对共同价值观的故意模仿而发生的；对于后者，它是由于经济/政治压力和/或力量而发生的。然而，这两种方法都无法解释在全球南方出现并在全球范围内采用的规范。本文认为，后殖民社会学可以帮助克服现有理论的共同缺陷，并通过其对次要机构“关系主义”的分析重点，为分析全球传播提供理论框架。'和殖民权力的轮廓。使用档案数据和对 1938 年贸易争端（仲裁和调查）条例的历史分析证明了后殖民社会学的效用，该条例出现在特立尼达和多巴哥，随后被大英帝国的许多殖民地采用。