Empirical analysis shows that formal and informal institutions are key factors in explaining why some countries, as well as territories within countries, are more prosperous than others are. After almost 160 years from their formal unification, Italian territories are still quite heterogeneous...

The Role of Anchor Institutions in Sustaining Community Economic Development analyzes the positive impact that institutions of higher education can have in stabilizing and improving the nation's struggling communities

Although institutions are believed to be key determinants of economic performance, there is limited evidence on how they can be successfully reformed. Evaluating the effects of specific reforms is complicated by the lack of exogenous variation in the presence of institutions; the difficulty of...

"Although institutions are believed to be key determinants of economic performance, there is limited evidence on how they can be successfully reformed. The most popular strategy to improve local institutions in developing countries is "community driven development" (CDD). This paper estimates...

Although institutions are believed to be key determinants of economic performance, there is limited evidence on how they can be successfully reformed. Evaluating the effects of specific reforms is complicated by the lack of exogenous variation in the presence of institutions; the difficulty of...