Perfectly discriminating contests (or all pay auction) are widely used as a model of situations where individuals … devote resources to win some prize. In reality such contests are often preceded by investments of the contestants into their …

This paper studies a large class of imperfectly discriminating contests, referred to as elastic contests, that induce … definite answers regarding the extent of rent dissipation in Tullock contests with intermediate values of the decisiveness …

The category of conflict encompasses not only war but also crime, litigation, strikes and lockouts, and redistributive … politics. Exchange theory and conflict theory constitute two coequal branches of economic analysis, the first based upon … conflict are reviewed. Preferences, opportunities, and perceptions are shown to determine the choice between conflict and …