Description
Book SynopsisExplores the question of why income per capita varies so greatly across countries. This book is unique in its melding of economics, political science, history, and sociology to address its central question.
Trade ReviewA first-rate book that bridges theory, history, and empirical analysis. -- Nathan Sussman, Hebrew University
Why are some societies but not others able to encourage investments in places, people, and productivity? This book delivers a powerful message that the answer lies in large part in institutional differences across societies. It is the most successful interdisciplinary endeavor in the social sciences that I have ever had the pleasure to read. -- Daniel Trefler, University of Toronto
Table of Contents* Preface * Introduction Part One: History * The Impact of Administrative Power on Political and Economic Developments: Toward a Political Economy of Implementation Avner Greif * The Institutional Origins of the Industrial Revolution Joel Mokyr * Institutions and the Resource Curse in Early Modern Spain Mauricio Drelichman and Hans-Joachim Voth * Slavery, Inequality, and Economic Development in the Americas: An Examination of the Engerman-Sokoloff Hypothesis Nathan Nunn * Economic and Political Inequality in Development: The Case of Cundinamarca, Colombia Daron Acemoglu, Maria Angelica Bautista, Pablo Querubin and James Robinson Part Two: Theory * The Constitutional Choice of Bicameralism Abhinay Muthoo and Kenneth A. Shepsle * Economic Development, Insurgency, and Civil War James D. Fearon * Party Discipline and Pork-Barrel Politics Gene Grossman and Elhanan Helpman * Policy Persistence in Multi-Party Parliamentary Democracies Daniel Diermeier and Pohan Fong Part Three: Contemporary Evidence * Formalizing Informal Institutions: Theory and Evidence From a Kenyan Slum Siwan Anderson and Patrick Francois * Making Autocracy Work Timothy Besley and Masayuki Kudamatsu * Democracy, Technology and Growth Philippe Aghion, Alberto Alesina and Francesco Trebbi * The Growth Effect of Democracy: Is it Heterogeneous and How Can it Be Estimated? Torsten Persson and Guido Tabellini
