How do processes of globalization evidenced by increasing cross-border flows of capital, goods, people and ideas, affect domestic governance in established countries as well as in fragile, developing societies? How do these forces influence domestic governance and national performance with respect to, for example, human rights, the fulfilment of people's basic needs, and economic growth and competitiveness? What conditions shape the effectiveness with which officials cope with external pressures and internal challenges, perhaps even enabling them to take advantage of these pressures and challenges for a few select countries? What important characteristics separate these more successful countries from those that are less successful? What policy lessons and theoretical implications can one draw from rigorous empirical research? In addition to these questions, this volume probes the interactions between domestic and international political economies, and inquires about their effects in different regional and national contexts. The contributors seek to identify persistent patterns as well as changing trends in regard to these important questions of theory and policy by applying systematic cross-national analyses.