The new institutional economics and its relevance to social economics

There has been a quiet revolution in economic theory, led by the New Institutionalists. Pioneered by Douglass C. North, this group argues that institutions are the main determinants of economic performance, yet neoclassical economics has no role for institutions. Contrary to many misconceptions, this theory of institutions can be integrated with neoclassical economics, leaving mainstream economic theory in tact, but broader and more relevant. The purpose of this article is twofold. First, the main arguments of the New Institutionalists are summarized. Second, the bridge between institutions and social economics is explored. The article concludes by arguing that the New Institutional approach is fruitful, and that the theory will gradually be integrated with neoclassical economics, until the two merge into a single body of theory.     

新制度经济学的新发展:历史比较制度分析

新制度经济学在完全理性与有限理性之间左右摇摆,限制了制度理论的发展。以格雷夫为代表的历史比较制度分析,在有限理性前提下,通过大量案例研究,提出了自己关于制度及其变迁的真知灼见:(1)克服两个“两分法”,发展了统一的制度概念;(2)将制度理解为博弈均衡,重点解释古典博弈论成为制度分析有用工具的条件;(2)研究制度在变化的环境中如何存续、内生的制度变迁以及过去制度影响后续制度的原因和作用机制;(3)提出了独具特色的互动的特定历史情景分析,将重复博弈理论与特定历史情景结合起来去识别制度,解释其出现、存续和变迁。     

马克思企业理论和新制度经济学企业理论的比较

本文从企业的产生、企业的边界、企业的内部控制,以及分配三个方面对马克思主义经济学和新制度经济学的企业理论进行比较。马克思主义经济学用历史唯物主义方法将企业看作资本主义经济运行过程中的一个环节,揭示了企业产生和发展的原因,并精辟地分析了隐藏在物的背后的两大阶级之间的矛盾对立关系;新制度经济学采用逻辑实证的方法对企业进行分析,认为交易费用是决定企业产生及规模变化的重要因素,企业内部的控制和分配关系是由效率来决定的——这种将所有生产要素都看作是客观资源的分析方法,掩盖了利益分配的实质,从而忽视了人的主体性因素。     

Gardiner C. Means's institutional and post-Keynesian economics

In this tribute to the work of Gardiner Means, we shall argue that his influence has been on a par with that of Keynes on economists of an unorthodox persuasion. It is argued that his pioneering work in studying the modern corporation as an institution that needs to be fully understood, renders him a first-rate institutionalist. Intriguingly, it is also suggested that his interest in the microeconomic foundations of macroeconomic performance are suggestive of post-Keynesian concerns.     

中国-东盟自由贸易区的新制度经济学思考

本文利用新制度经济学和公共选择学派的理论，通过对20世纪60年代以来世界两轮区域经济一体化浪潮的特点进行分析，得出了区域经济一体化制度变迁的新制度经济学解释。同时还利用该解释，对建立中国-东盟自由贸易区所需要的制度安排和经济贸易措施进行了相关分析。     

The state of Portuguese research in economics: 20 years after

Portuguese Economic Journal - In this paper we look at the state of Portuguese research in economics, with an emphasis on the 2000–2019 period. For this purpose we use three distinct data...     

Bioeconomics of some nonhuman and human societies: new institutional economics approach

New institutional economics (NIE) has been very successful in explaining the role of institutions such as the firm, money, and contract law in facilitating production and exchange in human societies. In this paper, I will show that the NIE approach, which so far has been used by economists to analyze institutions and organizations in human society, including the ethnically homogeneous middleman groups, can also be extended to explain the high degree of cooperation and coordination of activities of honeybees, ants, and schooling fish. In addition, the paper emphasize the importance of identity in nonhuman and human societies in eliciting cooperation and in detecting cheaters or fakers. This paper thus contribute to the integration/consilience of economics and biology by providing a more unified view of aspects of the bioeconomics of nonhuman and human societies.     

新制度经济学的新发展与政治学新制度主义:比较与启示

新制度经济学和政治学新制度主义在发展中都因为缺乏现实性、历史性和社会性而受到批评.面对相似的问题,经济学领域兴起了以青木和格雷夫为代表的比较制度分析,政治学领域兴起了历史制度主义和社会学制度主义.本文从制度观、制度对行为的影响、制度的变迁、过去的制度对现在制度的影响、文化观念和意识形态在制度形成和发展中的作用等方面,对比较制度分析和历史制度主义、社会学制度主义进行了比较,就未来制度研究的发展趋势提出了看法.     

New directions in emissions trading: the potential contribution of new institutional economics

Once an arcane topic even among environmental economists, emissions trading systems have substantially increased during this past decade in the USA. Moreover, the implementation of these systems has necessitated increased involvement of professionals in many fields besides economics. This paper reviews the practical experience of the six major types of emissions trading systems, focusing on credit market development, participation and results, including transaction costs. Five more recent applications of emissions trading also are considered, as well as the possibility of inter-pollutant trading. While inter-pollutant trading has been successfully used for chlorofluorocarbons (CFCs), the applicability of this experience is probably very limited. Additionally, it would be highly premature to attempt an evaluation of these newer emissions trading systems, some of which have yet to be even partially implemented. In order to improve these latter and future programs, the paper considers the potential contribution of the New Institutional Economics (NIE) to emissions trading. The NIE is used to develop theoretical insights and a series of predictions about the performance of a range of emissions trading systems.     

制度创新、理论创新的30年——兼论创立有中国特色的转轨经济学和社会主义市场经济学

社会主义市场经济体制最本质的特征是社会主义基本制度与市场经济相结合,其核心内容即社会主义公有制与市场经济相结合.这是邓小平同志总结了国内外社会主义经济建设的经验教训,解放思想,破除来自传统马克思主义政治经济学和西方经济学左右两方面的同一把思想枷锁--市场经济与社会主义公有制不相容,于20世纪90年代初作出的战略决策.同时,改革开放把中国推进到有中国特色的"三种转轨交织在一起"的转轨时期,其间的复杂性、艰巨性,是现代西方经济学所未曾遇到和研究过的.这里,既有制度创新,也须理论创新.建立有中国特色的转轨经济学和社会主义市场经济学的使命,便历史地落在中国人民的肩上.     

Field experiments in economics: The past, the present, and the future

This study presents an overview of modern field experiments and their usage in economics. Our discussion focuses on three distinct periods of field experimentation that have influenced the economics literature. The first might well be thought of as the dawn of “field” experimentation: the work of Neyman and Fisher, who laid the experimental foundation in the 1920s and 1930s by conceptualizing randomization as an instrument to achieve identification via experimentation with agricultural plots. The second, the large-scale social experiments conducted by government agencies in the mid-twentieth century, moved the exploration from plots of land to groups of individuals. More recently, the nature and range of field experiments has expanded, with a diverse set of controlled experiments being completed outside of the typical laboratory environment. With this growth, the number and types of questions that can be explored using field experiments has grown tremendously. After discussing these three distinct phases, we speculate on the future of field experimental methods, a future that we envision including a strong collaborative effort with outside parties, most importantly private entities.     

Chinese rural reform in 30 years: An analysis in terms of institutional economics

Both from history and logic, the rural reform is the starting point for China’s overall economic reform. The gradualism, inherent logical evolution and interest conflict of reform in China all have their origins in rural reform. The thirty-year’s rural reform can be viewed as the adjustment of urban-rural relations by different period. This study adopts the analytical framework of institutional economics to clearly demonstrate the whole logic process of institutional transition, then from the international comparative perspective, generalizes some basic experiences in China’s rural reform and the lessons for developing and transitional countries. On the basis of judging different stages of economic development, this paper also sums up the new challenges faced by rural reform and discusses its prospects for the next reform.     

Labor supply: Toward the construction of an alternative conception from post Keynesian and institutional economics

Post Keynesian and institutional economics have traditionally maintained a critical stance toward the orthodox model of labor supply, questioning many of its underlying assumptions. Nevertheless, this critical view has not led to the formulation of an alternative conception of labor supply that is sufficiently coherent and structured to be generally accepted within these branches of the literature. Accordingly, the purpose of this study is to contribute to the construction of such an alternative. To do so, the article starts by analyzing the relationship between the reasons that lead to individuals offering their labor and what that activity can bring to human beings in return. Secondly, the authors present an alternative concept of what workers contribute at work. They then analyze how the decision-making process regarding the labor supply actually takes place. Finally, the article concludes by briefly presenting certain additional points, in particular how differentiation is an inherent feature of the labor supply.     

The economics of corruption

This paper considers the relationship between market structure and the incidence of corrupt dealings in the government contracting process. Three cases are analyzed. We first deal with a situation in which government preferences are well-defined and many firms compete for the contract; we then contrast this case with one in which government preferences are ‘vague’ and finally eliminate the competitive assumption to consider the case of bilateral monopoly. It is then possible to consider the extent to which various criminal sanctions will deter corruption and the degree to which criminal incentives can be reduced by revising contracting procedures and reorganizing market structures.