The key element of models of contest is the Contest Success Function (CSF) whichspecifies the winning probabilities of agents. We provide an axiomatization of two parametricfamilies of CSF’s. In the first, the winning probability of each agent depends onthe investments and a vector of...

This paper addresses the personal linkages between the public administration and the legislaturethat emerge because public servants pursue a political mandate. There are concernsthat the strong representation of bureaucrats in many Western parliaments compromises theconstitutionally proposed...

Many countries are forging ahead with convenient balloting methods, in particularelectronic and postal voting, in order to re-engage voters. In this paper, we test whether thecost reductions with postal voting increase turnout. The empirical analysis is based on anewly collected data set on the...

This paper addresses the personal linkages between the public service and the legislaturethat emerge because public servants pursue a political mandate. There are concerns thatthe strong representation of public servants in many Western parliaments compromises theconstitutionally proposed...

We consider a median voter model with uncertainty about how theeconomy functions. The distribution of income is exogenously given andthe provision of a public good is ¯nanced through a proportional tax.Voters and politicians do not know the true production function for thepublic good, but by...

A crucial aspect of constitutional design is the provision of rules onhow a constitution is to be amended. If procedures for constitutional amendmentare very restrictive, changes will take place outside the constitution. Thesechanges are likely to be against the citizens’ interests and their...

World governance today is characterized by international organizationslacking democratic legitimacy and control by the citizens they claim to represent. Theyare also criticized for being inefficient. This leads to violent protests and to NGOs havinggreat influence. To address these problems, we...

People not only obtain utility from actual outcomes but also from the conditionswhich lead to these outcomes. The paper proposes an economic concept of this notion ofprocedural utility. Preferences beyond outcome can be manifold. We distinguish proceduralutility people get from institutions as...

... Die vorliegende Arbeit stützt sich deshalb auf eine institutionell bedingte Veränderung derBeteiligung, die Einführung des Frauenstimmrechts, um den Effekt einer kontrolliertenAusweitung des Elektorats auf die Staatsausgaben zu untersuchen. Das institutionelle Labor Schweiz erlaubt dabei...

The paper proves that in two-player logit form symmetric contestswith concave success function, commitment to a particular strategydoes not increase a player's payo, while in contests with more thantwo players it does. The paper also provides a contest-like game inwhich commitment does not...