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Political Economy: Success or Failure?

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  • Bruno S. Frey
  • Lasse Steiner

Abstract

Political Economy and Public Choice have studied the interactions between the economy and the polity for over 60 years now. The present paper endeavours to provide a critical discussion of this literature and its achievements. In particular, it starts with the different approaches based on empirically tested or politometric models, and it then proceeds to discuss different studies of the effects that particular rules of the game have on politico-economic outcomes. The third part will deal with studies that take institutions to be endogenous and aim at ex-plaining why particular institutions emerge. Finally, the question whether political economy has been a success or a failure will be tackled. While the success in terms of the position gained in economic research and teaching is undeniable, a look at one of the most thriving recent areas of economics, namely happiness research, will reveal that fundamental lessons all too often remain disregarded.
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Suggested Citation

  • Bruno S. Frey & Lasse Steiner, 2012. "Political Economy: Success or Failure?," Contemporary Economics, University of Economics and Human Sciences in Warsaw., vol. 6(3), September.
    • Handle: RePEc:wyz:journl:id:247
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    2. Yusuf Çelik & Mahmud Khan & Neşet Hikmet, 2017. "Achieving value for money in health: a comparative analysis of OECD countries and regional countries," International Journal of Health Planning and Management, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 32(4), pages 279-298, October.
    3. Lena Malešević-Perović & Vladimir Šimić & Vinko Muštra, 2013. "Investigating the Influence of Economic and Socio-Political Openness on Growth," International Journal of Business and Economic Sciences Applied Research (IJBESAR), International Hellenic University (IHU), Kavala Campus, Greece (formerly Eastern Macedonia and Thrace Institute of Technology - EMaTTech), vol. 6(3), pages 35-59, December.
    4. Richard M. Bird, 2014. "Foreign advice and tax policy in developing countries," Chapters, in: Richard M. Bird & Jorge Martinez-Vazquez (ed.), Taxation and Development: The Weakest Link?, chapter 4, pages 103-144, Edward Elgar Publishing.
    5. Lenka Slavikova, 2013. "From Cost-Benefit to Institutional Analysis in The Economics of the Environment," Contemporary Economics, University of Economics and Human Sciences in Warsaw., vol. 7(2), June.

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    JEL classification:

    • D72 - Microeconomics - - Analysis of Collective Decision-Making - - - Political Processes: Rent-seeking, Lobbying, Elections, Legislatures, and Voting Behavior

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