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Transaction Cost Economics: An Introduction

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  • Williamson, Oliver E.

Abstract

This overview of transaction cost economics is organized around the "Carnegie Triple" - be disciplined; be interdisciplinary; have an active mind. The first of these urges those who would open up the black box of economic organization to do so in a modest, slow, molecular, definitive way, with the object of deriving refutable implications and submitting these to empirical testing. The second recommends that the student of economic organization be prepared to cross disciplinary boundaries if and as this is needed to preserve veridical contact with the phenomena. The injunction have an active mind is implemented by being curious and asking the question "What is going on here?" The paper concludes with a discussion of operationalization.

Suggested Citation

  • Williamson, Oliver E., 2007. "Transaction Cost Economics: An Introduction," Economics Discussion Papers 2007-3, Kiel Institute for the World Economy (IfW Kiel).
    • Handle: RePEc:zbw:ifwedp:5517
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    1. Alchian, Armen A & Demsetz, Harold, 1972. "Production , Information Costs, and Economic Organization," American Economic Review, American Economic Association, vol. 62(5), pages 777-795, December.
    2. Bajari, Patrick & Tadelis, Steven, 2001. "Incentives versus Transaction Costs: A Theory of Procurement Contracts," RAND Journal of Economics, The RAND Corporation, vol. 32(3), pages 387-407, Autumn.
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    4. Steven Tadelis, 2002. "Complexity, Flexibility, and the Make-or-Buy Decision," American Economic Review, American Economic Association, vol. 92(2), pages 433-437, May.
    5. Oliver E. Williamson, 2025. "Transaction Cost Economics," Springer Books, in: Claude Ménard & Mary M. Shirley (ed.), Handbook of New Institutional Economics, edition 0, chapter 4, pages 47-71, Springer.
    6. Jonathan Levin & Steven Tadelis, 2010. "Contracting For Government Services: Theory And Evidence From U.S. Cities," Journal of Industrial Economics, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 58(3), pages 507-541, September.
    7. Claude Ménard, 2004. "The Economics of Hybrid Organizations," Journal of Institutional and Theoretical Economics (JITE), Mohr Siebeck, Tübingen, vol. 160(3), pages 345-376, September.
    8. F. A. Hayek, 2005. "The Use of Knowledge in Society," World Scientific Book Chapters, in: Guang-Zhen Sun (ed.), Readings In The Economics Of The Division Of Labor The Classical Tradition, chapter 25, pages 270-284, World Scientific Publishing Co. Pte. Ltd..
    9. Riordan, Michael H. & Williamson, Oliver E., 1985. "Asset specificity and economic organization," International Journal of Industrial Organization, Elsevier, vol. 3(4), pages 365-378, December.
    10. Williamson, Oliver E, 1971. "The Vertical Integration of Production: Market Failure Considerations," American Economic Review, American Economic Association, vol. 61(2), pages 112-123, May.
    11. R. Schmalensee & R. Willig (ed.), 1989. "Handbook of Industrial Organization," Handbook of Industrial Organization, Elsevier, edition 1, volume 1, number 1.
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    1. > Microeconomics > Transaction Cost Economics

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    Cited by:

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    3. Zhang, Lei & Zhu, Xueqin & Heerink, Nico & Shi, Xiaoping, 2014. "Does output market development affect irrigation water institutions? Insights from a case study in northern China," Agricultural Water Management, Elsevier, vol. 131(C), pages 70-78.
    4. Anna Trunk & Hendrik Birkel, 2022. "No Resilience Without Partners: A Case Study on German Small and Medium-Sized Enterprises in the Context of COVID-19," Schmalenbach Journal of Business Research, Springer, vol. 74(4), pages 537-574, December.
    5. Slapničar, Sergeja & Axelsen, Micheal & Bongiovanni, Ivano & Stockdale, David, 2023. "A pathway model to five lines of accountability in cybersecurity governance," International Journal of Accounting Information Systems, Elsevier, vol. 51(C).
    6. Vladimir Dvoracek, 2009. "Vertical Integration and Sunk Capital in Transition Economies," Oxford Development Studies, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 37(1), pages 19-32.
    7. H. Kiran Kumar & B. R. Naveen & J. Savitha, 2022. "Business Factors Challenging SMEs for Adopting Cloud-Based Solutions," International Journal of Global Business and Competitiveness, Springer, vol. 17(2), pages 203-214, December.
    8. Oliver Williamson, 2009. "Pragmatic methodology: a sketch, with applications to transaction cost economics," Journal of Economic Methodology, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 16(2), pages 145-157.
    9. Coulibaly, Salifou K. & Erbao, Cao & Metuge Mekongcho, T., 2018. "Economic globalization, entrepreneurship, and development," Technological Forecasting and Social Change, Elsevier, vol. 127(C), pages 271-280.
    10. Allam YOUSUF & Janos Felfoldi, 2017. "The Relationship Between Transaction Costs And Flexibility In Outsourcing: A Conceptual Framework," Annals of Faculty of Economics, University of Oradea, Faculty of Economics, vol. 1(1), pages 883-891, July.

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    More about this item

    JEL classification:

    • D2 - Microeconomics - - Production and Organizations
    • D73 - Microeconomics - - Analysis of Collective Decision-Making - - - Bureaucracy; Administrative Processes in Public Organizations; Corruption
    • D86 - Microeconomics - - Information, Knowledge, and Uncertainty - - - Economics of Contract Law
    • L2 - Industrial Organization - - Firm Objectives, Organization, and Behavior

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