Institutional Economics: Social Order and Public Policy

Author: De
Publisher:
Publish Date: 2000-11-01
Features: In recent years, the reputation of institutional economics has been growing. Because standard economic explanations often fail to grasp many significant policy issues of the time, such as economic reforms in developing countries, transformations in socialist planned economies, and regulatory issues in emerging industrial economies. Institutional economists argue that the rule system is crucial in explaining these issues, and the key to finding viable solutions lies in institutional innovation. Institutions must lay a solid foundation for increasingly complex interpersonal interactions, as human exchanges and cooperation rely on delicate and fragile chains of trust. This important work provides an accessible introduction to the developing methods of institutional economics and the core issues of private property and its competitive applications. The book explores its themes based on fundamental assumptions about human cognition and motivation. It includes the following policy-oriented discussions:
● The logical foundation of institutions and their importance;
● Institutional arrangements for establishing domestic markets and international trade;
● Institutional arrangements for laying the foundation of business organizations;
● The role of government, the relative advantages of private and public choice, and methods for controlling opportunistic use of political power;
● Reforms that can be implemented in mature economies deeply regulated by government yet must face challenges from new competitors;
● The causes of problems in socialist institutional systems;
● The impact of globalization on institutional development in the modernization process of third-world countries.