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Social Unrest in the Wake of IMF Structural Adjustment Programs

Author

Listed:
  • Ben Zissimos

    (Department of Economics, Vanderbilt University)

  • Caleb Stroup

    (Department of Economics, Davidson College)

Abstract

This paper proposes an answer to the question of why social unrest sometimes occurs in the wake of an IMF Structural Adjustment Program (SAP). Under certain circumstances, partly determined by a country’s comparative advantage, a nation’s elite may have an incentive to make transfers to the rest of society through government employment in order to quell social unrest. But under an SAP, the elite are constrained from making such transfers and consequently social unrest may arise. The paper proposes a framework from which a prediction can be made about the circumstances under which social unrest can be expected to occur. It then takes this prediction to the data and finds empirical support for it.

Suggested Citation

  • Ben Zissimos & Caleb Stroup, 2013. "Social Unrest in the Wake of IMF Structural Adjustment Programs," Working Papers 13-04, Davidson College, Department of Economics.
    • Handle: RePEc:dav:wpaper:13-04
    DOI: 10.4236/tel.2013.35A1006
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    8. Easterly, William, 2005. "What did structural adjustment adjust?: The association of policies and growth with repeated IMF and World Bank adjustment loans," Journal of Development Economics, Elsevier, vol. 76(1), pages 1-22, February.
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    11. Kilby, Christopher, 2009. "The political economy of conditionality: An empirical analysis of World Bank loan disbursements," Journal of Development Economics, Elsevier, vol. 89(1), pages 51-61, May.
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    Cited by:

    1. Stephen C. Nelson & Geoffrey P. R. Wallace, 2017. "Are IMF lending programs good or bad for democracy?," The Review of International Organizations, Springer, vol. 12(4), pages 523-558, December.
    2. Brett A. Casper, 2017. "IMF Programs and the Risk of a Coup d’état," Journal of Conflict Resolution, Peace Science Society (International), vol. 61(5), pages 964-996, May.

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    More about this item

    Keywords

    institutions; International Monetary Fund (IMF); social unrest; structural adjustment; trade integration;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • D30 - Microeconomics - - Distribution - - - General
    • D74 - Microeconomics - - Analysis of Collective Decision-Making - - - Conflict; Conflict Resolution; Alliances; Revolutions
    • F10 - International Economics - - Trade - - - General
    • O12 - Economic Development, Innovation, Technological Change, and Growth - - Economic Development - - - Microeconomic Analyses of Economic Development
    • P14 - Political Economy and Comparative Economic Systems - - Capitalist Economies - - - Property Rights

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