IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/jmi/articl/jmi-v3i1a5.html
   My bibliography  Save this article

A Reexamination of the Coase Theorem

Author

Listed:
  • Jingang Zhao

    (University of Saskatchewan, Canada)

Abstract

This paper makes three advances: 1) It fixes the empty-core problem of the Coase theorem; 2) it provides the smallest upper bound of transaction costs below which the optimal or efficient outcomes can be achieved; and 3) it establishes two mathematical theorems that capture the main insights and major aspects of the Coase theorem. A simpler version of the theorems says that in a coalitional production economy without transaction costs, the maximal payoff will be produced by the optimal firms and be allocated in the always non-empty core.

Suggested Citation

  • Jingang Zhao, 2018. "A Reexamination of the Coase Theorem," The Journal of Mechanism and Institution Design, Society for the Promotion of Mechanism and Institution Design, University of York, vol. 3(1), pages 111-132, December.
    • Handle: RePEc:jmi:articl:jmi-v3i1a5
    DOI: 10.22574/jmid.2018.12.005
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: http://www.mechanism-design.org/arch/v003-1/p_05.pdf
    Download Restriction: no
    File URL: https://libkey.io/10.22574/jmid.2018.12.005?utm_source=ideas
    LibKey link: if access is restricted and if your library uses this service, LibKey will redirect you to where you can use your library subscription to access this item
    ---><---

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Sun, Ning & Trockel, Walter & Yang, Zaifu, 2008. "Competitive outcomes and endogenous coalition formation in an n-person game," Journal of Mathematical Economics, Elsevier, vol. 44(7-8), pages 853-860, July.
    2. Stéphane Gonzalez & Alain Marciano & Philippe Solal, 2019. "The social cost problem, rights, and the (non)empty core," Journal of Public Economic Theory, Association for Public Economic Theory, vol. 21(2), pages 347-365, April.
    3. Jingang Zhao, 2001. "The relative interior of the base polyhedron and the core," Economic Theory, Springer;Society for the Advancement of Economic Theory (SAET), vol. 18(3), pages 635-648.
    4. Varouj Aivazian & Jeffrey Callen, 2003. "The Core, Transaction Costs, and the Coase Theorem," Constitutional Political Economy, Springer, vol. 14(4), pages 287-299, December.
    5. R. H. Coase, 2013. "The Problem of Social Cost," Journal of Law and Economics, University of Chicago Press, vol. 56(4), pages 837-877.
    6. Lloyd S. Shapley, 1967. "On balanced sets and cores," Naval Research Logistics Quarterly, John Wiley & Sons, vol. 14(4), pages 453-460.
    7. Regan, Donald H, 1972. "The Problem of Social Cost Revisited," Journal of Law and Economics, University of Chicago Press, vol. 15(2), pages 427-437, October.
    8. Shapley, Lloyd S. & Shubik, Martin, 1969. "On market games," Journal of Economic Theory, Elsevier, vol. 1(1), pages 9-25, June.
    9. Herbert E. Scarf, 1967. "The Approximation of Fixed Points of a Continuous Mapping," Cowles Foundation Discussion Papers 216R, Cowles Foundation for Research in Economics, Yale University.
    10. Lester G. Telser, 1994. "The Usefulness of Core Theory in Economics," Journal of Economic Perspectives, American Economic Association, vol. 8(2), pages 151-164, Spring.
    11. Coase, R H, 1981. "The Coase Theorem and the Empty Core: A Comment," Journal of Law and Economics, University of Chicago Press, vol. 24(1), pages 183-187, April.
    12. Zhao, Jingang, 2018. "Three little-known and yet still significant contributions of Lloyd Shapley," Games and Economic Behavior, Elsevier, vol. 108(C), pages 592-599.
    13. Aivazian, Varouj A & Callen, Jeffrey L, 1981. "The Coase Theorem and the Empty Core," Journal of Law and Economics, University of Chicago Press, vol. 24(1), pages 175-181, April.
    14. Juan C. Cesco, 2012. "Nonempty Core-Type Solutions Over Balanced Coalitions In Tu-Games," International Game Theory Review (IGTR), World Scientific Publishing Co. Pte. Ltd., vol. 14(03), pages 1-16.
    15. Zhou Lin, 1994. "A New Bargaining Set of an N-Person Game and Endogenous Coalition Formation," Games and Economic Behavior, Elsevier, vol. 6(3), pages 512-526, May.
    16. Jingang Zhao, 2009. "Estimating Merging Costs by Merger Preconditions," Theory and Decision, Springer, vol. 66(4), pages 373-399, April.
    17. Takayuki Watanabe & Nobuo Matsubayashi, 2013. "Note on Stable Mergers in a Market with Asymmetric Substitutability," Economics Bulletin, AccessEcon, vol. 33(3), pages 2024-2033.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Citations

    Citations are extracted by the CitEc Project, subscribe to its RSS feed for this item.
    as


    Cited by:

    1. Kevin Techer, 2020. "Stable agreements through liability rules: a multi-choice games approach to the social cost problem," Working Papers 2028, Groupe d'Analyse et de Théorie Economique Lyon St-Étienne (GATE Lyon St-Étienne), Université de Lyon.
    2. Fatma Aslan & Papatya Duman & Walter Trockel, 2019. "Duality for General TU-games Redefined," Working Papers CIE 121, Paderborn University, CIE Center for International Economics.
    3. Aivazian, Varouj A. & Callen, Jeffrey L., 2023. "The Coase Theorem and the empty core: Inspecting the entrails after four decades," International Review of Law and Economics, Elsevier, vol. 73(C).
    4. Techer, Kevin, 2021. "Stable agreements through liability rules: A multi-choice game approach to the social cost problem," Mathematical Social Sciences, Elsevier, vol. 111(C), pages 77-88.
    5. Kevin Techer, 2020. "Stable agreements through liability rules: a multi- choice games approach to the social cost problem," Working Papers halshs-02939246, HAL.

    Most related items

    These are the items that most often cite the same works as this one and are cited by the same works as this one.
    1. Aivazian, Varouj A. & Callen, Jeffrey L., 2023. "The Coase Theorem and the empty core: Inspecting the entrails after four decades," International Review of Law and Economics, Elsevier, vol. 73(C).
    2. Steven G. Medema, 2020. "The Coase Theorem at Sixty," Journal of Economic Literature, American Economic Association, vol. 58(4), pages 1045-1128, December.
    3. Herbert Hovenkamp, 2011. "Coasean markets," European Journal of Law and Economics, Springer, vol. 31(1), pages 63-90, February.
    4. Stéphane Gonzalez & Alain Marciano, 2017. "De nouveaux éclairages sur le théorème de Coase et la vacuité du cœur," Revue d'économie politique, Dalloz, vol. 127(4), pages 579-600.
    5. Enrico Guzzini & Antonio Palestrini, 2009. "The empty core in the Coase theorem: a critical assessment," Economics Bulletin, AccessEcon, vol. 29(4), pages 3095-3103.
    6. Élodie Bertrand, 2006. "La thèse d'efficience du « théorème de Coase ». Quelle critique de la microéconomie ?," Revue économique, Presses de Sciences-Po, vol. 57(5), pages 983-1007.
    7. Techer, Kevin, 2021. "Stable agreements through liability rules: A multi-choice game approach to the social cost problem," Mathematical Social Sciences, Elsevier, vol. 111(C), pages 77-88.
    8. Alex Robson, 2014. "Transaction costs can encourage Coasean bargaining," Public Choice, Springer, vol. 160(3), pages 539-549, September.
    9. Aivazian Varouj A. & Callen Jeffrey L., 2017. "The Coase Theorem and Core Theory," Man and the Economy, De Gruyter, vol. 4(2), pages 1-5, December.
    10. Carlos Hervés-Beloso & Francisco Martínez-Concha, 2023. "Coasian rights in a cap-and-trade mechanism with damage compensations," European Journal of Law and Economics, Springer, vol. 56(3), pages 425-441, December.
    11. Camelia Bejan & Juan Camilo Gómez, 2017. "Employment lotteries, endogenous firm formation and the aspiration core," Economic Theory Bulletin, Springer;Society for the Advancement of Economic Theory (SAET), vol. 5(2), pages 215-226, October.
    12. Sun, Ning & Trockel, Walter & Yang, Zaifu, 2008. "Competitive outcomes and endogenous coalition formation in an n-person game," Journal of Mathematical Economics, Elsevier, vol. 44(7-8), pages 853-860, July.
    13. Crettez Bertrand, 2020. "The Coase Theorem, the Nonempty Core, and the Legal Neutrality Principle," Review of Law & Economics, De Gruyter, vol. 16(1), pages 1-16, March.
    14. Stéphane Gonzalez & Michel Grabisch, 2015. "Autonomous coalitions," Annals of Operations Research, Springer, vol. 235(1), pages 301-317, December.
    15. Gonzalez, Stéphane & Grabisch, Michel, 2016. "Multicoalitional solutions," Journal of Mathematical Economics, Elsevier, vol. 64(C), pages 1-10.
    16. Jingang Zhao, 2008. "The Maximal Payoff and Coalition Formation in Coalitional Games," Working Papers 2008.27, Fondazione Eni Enrico Mattei.
    17. Aymeric Lardon, 2019. "On the coalitional stability of monopoly power in differentiated Bertrand and Cournot oligopolies," Theory and Decision, Springer, vol. 87(4), pages 421-449, November.
    18. Ko, Il-Dong, 1988. "Issues in the control of stock externality problems with inflexible policy measures," ISU General Staff Papers 198801010800009859, Iowa State University, Department of Economics.
    19. Ellingsen, Tore & Paltseva, Elena, 2012. "The private provision of excludable public goods: An inefficiency result," Journal of Public Economics, Elsevier, vol. 96(9-10), pages 658-669.
    20. Fritz W. Scharpf, 1994. "Games Real Actors Could Play," Journal of Theoretical Politics, , vol. 6(1), pages 27-53, January.

    More about this item

    Keywords

    Coalition formation; core; optimal firms.;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • C71 - Mathematical and Quantitative Methods - - Game Theory and Bargaining Theory - - - Cooperative Games
    • D23 - Microeconomics - - Production and Organizations - - - Organizational Behavior; Transaction Costs; Property Rights
    • L11 - Industrial Organization - - Market Structure, Firm Strategy, and Market Performance - - - Production, Pricing, and Market Structure; Size Distribution of Firms
    • L23 - Industrial Organization - - Firm Objectives, Organization, and Behavior - - - Organization of Production

    Statistics

    Access and download statistics

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:jmi:articl:jmi-v3i1a5. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    If CitEc recognized a bibliographic reference but did not link an item in RePEc to it, you can help with this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: Paul Schweinzer (email available below). General contact details of provider: https://edirc.repec.org/data/deyoruk.html .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.