Showing papers by "Douglass C. North published in 2003"
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TL;DR: The Gunnar Myrdal lecture as discussed by the authors suggests that the gaps in income per capita between richer and poorer countries largely reflect the quality of their institutions, by reducing uncertainty, are the key to facilitating cooperation which allows the realization of the gains from trade and exchange and the advantages of increasing specialization.
Abstract: This paper provides the text of the Gunnar Myrdal Lecture presented at the U.N. Palais des Nations in 2003. The lecture suggests that the gaps in income per capita between richer and poorer countries largely reflect the quality of their institutions. Institutions, by reducing uncertainty, are the key to facilitating cooperation which allows the realization of the gains from trade and exchange and the advantages of increasing specialization. It is argued that there is no single strategy for institutional design that will fit all countries.
93 citations
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TL;DR: In this paper, a broad overview of the interplay among cognition, belief systems, and institutions, and how they affect economic performance is provided, and the authors argue that a deeper understanding of institutions emergence, their working properties, and their effect on economic and political outcomes should begin from an analysis of cognitive processes.
Abstract: In this article, we provide a broad overview of the interplay among cognition, belief systems, and institutions, and how they affect economic performance. We argue that a deeper understanding of institutions’ emergence, their working properties, and their effect on economic and political outcomes should begin from an analysis of cognitive processes. We explore the nature of individual and collective learning, stressing that the issue is not whether agents are perfectly or boundedly rational, but rather how human beings actually reason and choose, individually and in collective settings. We then tie the processes of learning to institutional analysis, providing arguments in favor of what can be characterized as “cognitive institutionalism.” Besides, we show that a full treatment of the phenomenon of path dependence should start at the cognitive level, proceed at the institutional level, and culminate at the economic level.
6 citations
Book•
01 Jan 2003
TL;DR: A lecture delivered by Nobel laureate Professor Douglass C. North in 2003 as mentioned in this paper highlights the important role played by institutions (defined as including formal rules such as the rule of law and property rights, as well as informal constraints relating to beliefs, traditions and social norms) in promoting socio-economic development.
Abstract: This paper contains the text of a lecture delivered by Nobel laureate Professor Douglass C. North in March 2003, the first in a second series of lectures in honour of Gunnar Myrdal (the first Executive Secretary of the UN Economic Commission for Europe). The lecture highlights the important role played by institutions (defined as including formal rules such as the rule of law and property rights, as well as informal constraints relating to beliefs, traditions and social norms) in promoting socio-economic development. Professor North argues that the considerable gaps in per capita income between richer and poorer countries reflect the quality of their institutions. However, in a continuously evolving world economy, there is no single strategy for institutional design to fit all countries seeking sustained economic growth and development.
5 citations