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Emergence and Persistence of Inefficient States

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Author Info
Acemoglu, D.
Ticchi, D.
Vindigni, A.

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Abstract

Inefficiencies in the bureaucratic organization of the state are often viewed as important factors in retarding economic development. Why certain societies choose or end up with such inefficient organizations has received very little attention, however. In this paper, we present a simple theory of the emergence and persistence of inefficient states. The society consists of rich and poor individuals. The rich are initially in power, but expect to transition to democracy, which will choose redistributive policies. Taxation requires the employment of bureaucrats. We show that, under certain circumstances, by choosing an inefficient state structure, the rich may be able to use patronage and capture democratic politics. This enables them to reduce the amount of redistribution and public good provision in democracy. Moreover, the inefficient state creates its own constituency and tends to persist over time. The model shows that an equilibrium with an inefficient state is more likely to arise when there is greater inequality between the rich and the poor, when bureaucratic rents take intermediate values and when individuals are sufficiently forward-looking.

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Paper provided by Princeton University, Research Program in Political Economy in its series Papers with number 12-02-2006.

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Date of creation: Dec 2006
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Handle: RePEc:ecl:prirpe:12-02-2006

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(explanations, Please report citation or reference errors to , or , if you are the registered author of the cited work, log in to your RePEc Author Service profile, click on "citations" and make appropriate adjustments.)

  1. Ciro Biderman & Glauco P. da Silva, 2007. "Estimating The Impact Of Participatory Budget On Observed Outcomes," Anais do XXXV Encontro Nacional de Economia [Proceedings of the 35th Brazilian Economics Meeting] 070, ANPEC - Associação Nacional dos Centros de Pósgraduação em Economia [Brazilian Association of Graduate Programs in Economics]. [Downloadable!]
  2. Acemoglu, Daron & Ticchi, Davide & Vindigni, Andrea, 2008. "A Theory of Military Dictatorships," IZA Discussion Papers 3392, Institute for the Study of Labor (IZA). [Downloadable!]
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  3. Vindigni, Andrea, 2008. "Uncertainty and the Politics of Employment Protection," IZA Discussion Papers 3509, Institute for the Study of Labor (IZA). [Downloadable!]
  4. Grosjean, Pauline & Senik, Claudia, 2008. "Why Populist Democracy Promotes Market Liberalization," IZA Discussion Papers 3527, Institute for the Study of Labor (IZA). [Downloadable!]
  5. Sarmistha Pal & Sugata Ghosh, 2008. "The Elite and the Marginalised: an Analysis of Public Spending on Mass Education in the Indian States," CEDI Discussion Paper Series 08-15, Centre for Economic Development and Institutions(CEDI), Brunel University. [Downloadable!]
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  6. Paolo Ghirardato & Fabio Maccheroni & Massimo Marinacci, 2007. "Revealed Ambiguity and Its Consequences: Updating," Carlo Alberto Notebooks 44, Collegio Carlo Alberto. [Downloadable!]
  7. Besley, Timothy J. & Kudamatsu, Masayuki, 2007. "Making Autocracy Work," CEPR Discussion Papers 6371, C.E.P.R. Discussion Papers. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
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  8. Vindigni, Andrea, 2008. "Uncertainty and the Politics of Employment Protection," Papers 05-27-2008, Princeton University, Research Program in Political Economy. [Downloadable!]
  9. Vindigni, Andrea, 2008. "Uncertainty and the politics of employment protection," P.O.L.I.S. department's Working Papers 106, Department of Public Policy and Public Choice - POLIS. [Downloadable!]
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  12. Daron Acemoglu & Victor Chernozhukov & Muhamet Yildiz, 2007. "Learning and Disagreement in an Uncertain World," Carlo Alberto Notebooks 48, Collegio Carlo Alberto. [Downloadable!]
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  13. Guido Tabellini, . "Institutions and Culture," Working Papers 330, IGIER (Innocenzo Gasparini Institute for Economic Research), Bocconi University. [Downloadable!]
  14. Joana Naritomi & Rodrigo R. Soares & Juliano J. Assunção, 2007. "Rent Seeking and the Unveiling of 'De Facto' Institutions: Development and Colonial Heritage within Brazil," NBER Working Papers 13545, National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
  15. Itzhak Gilboa & Fabio Maccheroni & Massimo Marinacci & David Schmeidler, 2008. "Objective and Subjective Rationality in a Multiple Prior Model," Carlo Alberto Notebooks 73, Collegio Carlo Alberto. [Downloadable!]
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