The paper inquires why in some countries traditionally ruled by absolute monarchs the monarchy survived in the form of constitutional monarchy but not in others. It considers constitutional monarchy as a negotiated settlement between the king and a liberal opposition to share office rents, while...

Advancements in online shopping for consumers requires consistent government support policies and the introduction of substantial government laws and regulations. In order to establish innovative developments in online shopping market environment that makes online shopping faster and stable, the...

In the search for an optimal institutional design in the European Union, efficiency criteria for the allocation of prerogatives to different levels of government are greatly needed. The goal of this article is to provide a comprehensive framework for the optimal allocation of prerogatives by...

Using the anti-corruption campaign launched in China in 2012, we examine how the rise of the economic presence of the private sector impacts economic activities and outcome. Although the economic activities may be temporarily inversely impacted by the campaign because some government officials...

This paper experimentally examines the extent to which individuals support a market-based approach to public policy and how support levels respond to being presented with policy analysis indicating market-based policies are more cost-effective. The findings are as follows. First, absent being...

Do minorities fare worse under direct democracy than under representative democracy? We provide new evidence by studying naturalization requests of immigrants in Switzerland that were typically decided with referendums in each municipality. Using panel data from 1,400 municipalities for the...

Why do elected officials often suffer from political paralysis and fail to implement the best policies available? This paper considers a new yet intuitive explanation that focuses on the quality of the politicians competing to replace the incumbent. The key insight is that a 'good' incumbent...

We argue that the policy response to the COVID-19 pandemic by all levels of government around the world is not consistent with recommendations from standard welfare economics. Thus, it is important to ask why such policies have been adopted. That opens the door to examining the political economy...

This is a book chapter in a forthcoming book, Law, Property, and Society (Ashgate Press). The chapter argues that financing extreme catastrophic loss will become more problematic as catastrophes become more frequent and severe. An effective strategy must increase the level of participation in...

A weather beaten economy has become a wake up call. The International Energy Agency predicts that carbon emissions will rise 130 percent and oil demand will rise 70 percent by 2050. A sound energy policy that addresses climate change relies upon widespread transfer and implementation of...