We provide a model in which small and relatively isolated communities can successfully manage local commons informally in circumstances where larger or less isolated communities could not do so. The reason for this is the non-anonymous nature of many interactions between the members of a small...

Many service industries, including the medical and legal professions in some countries, display a gated structure. Rather than approaching a final producer directly, a consumer will first seek a referral from an intermediary. In this paper, we provide one possible explanation for such an...