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Digging deeper into Hardin's pasture: the complex institutional structure of ‘the tragedy of the commons’

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  • COLE, DANIEL H.
  • EPSTEIN, GRAHAM
  • MCGINNIS, MICHAEL D.

Abstract

A revised application of Ostrom's (Ostrom, 2007) Social-Ecological System (SES) framework to Hardin's ‘tragedy of the commons’ (Hardin, G. (1968), Science, 162(3859): 1243–1248) demonstrates that its institutional structure is more complex than either Hardin or Ostrom had imagined. The ‘tragedy’ arises from several interacting resources and institutions. If the grass on the pasture was not subject to appropriation, the cattle were not privately owned, or property- and contract-enforcement institutions supporting market exchange were absent, then the ‘tragedy of the commons’ would not have arisen regardless of the open-access pasture. This paper highlights the utility of the SES framework and the care required to apply it precisely to specific social-ecological situations.

Suggested Citation

  • Cole, Daniel H. & Epstein, Graham & Mcginnis, Michael D., 2014. "Digging deeper into Hardin's pasture: the complex institutional structure of ‘the tragedy of the commons’," Journal of Institutional Economics, Cambridge University Press, vol. 10(3), pages 353-369, September.
    • Handle: RePEc:cup:jinsec:v:10:y:2014:i:03:p:353-369_00
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    Cited by:

    1. Safner, Ryan, 2016. "Institutional entrepreneurship, wikipedia, and the opportunity of the commons," Journal of Institutional Economics, Cambridge University Press, vol. 12(4), pages 743-771, December.
    2. Gu, Yiquan & Lord, Alexander & Eika, Anders & Dethier, Perrine & Samsura, D. Ary A. & Nordahl, Berit Irene & Sommervoll, Dag Einar & van der Krabben, Erwin & Halleux, Jean-Marie, 2021. "Fair shares? Advancing land economics through cooperative game theory," Land Use Policy, Elsevier, vol. 106(C).
    3. Alexander Lord & Yiquan Gu, 2019. "Can the market be tamed? A thought experiment on the value(s) of planning," Environment and Planning A, , vol. 51(1), pages 11-24, February.
    4. Murtazashvili, Ilia & Murtazashvili, Jennifer, 2016. "The origins of private property rights: states or customary organizations?," Journal of Institutional Economics, Cambridge University Press, vol. 12(1), pages 105-128, March.
    5. Tortia, Ermanno C., 2017. "The firm as a common. The case of the accumulation and use of capital resources in co-operative enterprises," MPRA Paper 76735, University Library of Munich, Germany.
    6. Ryan Safner, 2023. "Honor among thieves: how nineteenth century American pirate publishers simulated copyright protection," Economics of Governance, Springer, vol. 24(1), pages 119-141, March.
    7. Bonye, Samuel Ziem & Yiridomoh, Gordon Yenglier & Nsiah, Vivian, 2023. "Multi-stakeholder actors in resource management in Ghana: Dynamics of community-state collaboration in resource use management of the Mole National Park, Larabanga," Forest Policy and Economics, Elsevier, vol. 154(C).
    8. Falk, Thomas & Spangenberg, Joachim H. & Siegmund-Schultze, Marianna & Kobbe, Susanne & Feike, Til & Kuebler, Daniel & Settele, Josef & Vorlaufer, Tobias, 2018. "Identifying governance challenges in ecosystem services management – Conceptual considerations and comparison of global forest cases," Ecosystem Services, Elsevier, vol. 32(PB), pages 193-203.

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