There has been relatively little investigation of the relationship between constitutional transformations and the economic transition in post-communist countries. We develop a simple signaling model in which constitutionalism - a commitment to limit political power and provide judicial defense...

This paper examines the impact of on-the-job search by workers in the state sector on the level and duration of unemployment in transition economies. We derive the optimal speed of state sector closure when workers engage in on-the-job search

The transition from plan to market has hinged on the development of a dynamic private sector that would serve as the engine of growth and employment creation. This paper examines the link between the availability of skilled workers and the creation of new private firms. Using a dynamic search...

We argue that the tilt toward donor interests over recipient needs in aid allocation and practices may be particularly strong in new partnerships. Using the natural experiment of Eastern transition we find that commercial and strategic concerns influenced both aid flows and entry in the first...