Cheerleading for Liberalization: The International Monetary Fund and Financial Globalization in Emerging Markets.

A burgeoning literature suggests IOs exert considerable influence on policymaking in emerging markets through conditionality and "teaching." I argue that IO influence extends beyond these mechanisms to include "cheerleading." Cheerleading entails the provision of information to encourage a particular policy in cases where there is already a pre-existing domestic inclination for that policy. This information helps to reduce uncertainty and cajole domestic opponents, thus facilitating reform. I explore the influence of IMF advice and lending on capital account policy in emerging markets to assess the impact of conditionality, teaching, and cheerleading. Using a new data set that codes the professional training of 472 IMF staff as well as archival evidence and extensive interviews, I explore and test the evolution and influence of the Fund's prescriptions for liberalizing capital controls. I find that the IMF can on occasion be significant in influencing the decision to liberalize via cheerleading. ..PAT.-Unpublished Manuscript [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]