1st Edition

The Theory of Transaction in Institutional Economics A History

By Massimiliano Vatiero Copyright 2021
    104 Pages 14 B/W Illustrations
    by Routledge

    104 Pages 14 B/W Illustrations
    by Routledge

    Despite abundant literature on transaction costs, there is little to no in-depth analysis regarding what the transaction is or how it works. Drawing on both Old and New Institutional Economics and on a variety of interdisciplinary sources, this monograph traces the history of the meaning of transaction in institutional economics, mapping its topicality and use over time.


    This manuscript treats the idea of ‘transaction’ as a construct with legal, competitive and political dimensions, and connects different approaches within institutional economics. The book covers the contributions of key thinkers from different schools, including (in alphabetical order) Ronald H. Coase, John R. Commons, Robert Lee Hale, Oliver Hart, Mancur Olson, Thorstein Veblen and Olver E. Williamson.


    This book will be of interest to advanced students and researchers of institutional economics, law and economics, and economics, and the history of economic thought. 

    Preface

    The roadmap

    1 Mapping the meaning of "transaction"

    2 The three dimensions of a transaction

    3 The legal dimension of transactions

    4 The competitive dimension of transactions

    5 The political dimension of transactions

    6 Concluding remaorks and one (just one, but remarkable) research proposal

    References

    Index

     

     

    Biography

    Massimiliano Vatiero (Ph.D., University of Siena) is an Assistant Professor of Political Economy at the Department of Economics and Management (DEM) of the University of Trento (Italy), and is "Brenno Galli" Chair of Law and Economics at the Law Institute (IDUSI) of the Università della Svizzera Italiana, Switzerland.

    "Vatiero’s liberal combination of insights from the old and new institutionalisms is characteristic of what could be called the Siena approach to institutional economics." - David Gindis, University of Hertfordshire, HOPE reviews

    "The book and the research direction advanced by the author is in many respects more ambitious and consequential than one is led to believe from the title of the volume, it is not merely history but possibly also the future of the theory of transactions." - Paul Dragos Aligica, Oeconomia