This paper provides a first microeconomic foundation for the institution of marriage. Based on a model of reproduction, mating, and parental investment in children, we argue that marriage serves the purpose of attenuating the risk of mating market failure that arises from incomplete information...

The fact that China is an increasingly attractive market and a magnet for foreigndirect investment is not news. The unprecedented rise of foreign direct investmentinto China – now running at over $60 billion a year – has created the largest array ofinternational mergers and acquisitions,...

Wer möchte nicht Herr oder Frau im eigenen Haus sein – und möglichst für immer bleiben? Schalten und Walten können, ohne Rücksicht auf andere nehmen zu müssen – ein Traum von Selbständigkeit. Manch ein Gründer sieht sich schon als der allgewaltige und verehrte Chef seines Hauses mit...

We analyze optimal contracts and optimal matching patterns in a simple model of partnershipwhere there is a double-sided moral hazard problem and potential partners differ intheir productivity in two tasks. It is possible for one individual to accomplish both tasks (soleproduction) and there are...

This paper analyzes the role of public and private responsibility in the provision of publicgoods. We emphasize that a typical public good will require many different inputs whichraises the possibility of partnerships to exploit comparative advantages of different parties.But hold-up problems...