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Papers by Lee Alston

Research paper thumbnail of New Approaches to Economic and Social History

Research paper thumbnail of Toward an understanding of property rights

Empirical Studies in Institutional Change

Research paper thumbnail of A Deplorable Scarcity: The Failure of Industralization in the Slave Economy

The American Historical Review, 1982

Research paper thumbnail of The economics of rural organization: Theory, practice and policy

Journal of Development Economics, Aug 1, 1995

Research paper thumbnail of Southern Paternalism and the American Welfare State: Economics, Politics, and Institutions in the South, 1865-1965

Southern Economic Journal, Oct 1, 1999

Research paper thumbnail of Violence and the assignment of property rights on two Brazilian frontiers

Cambridge University Press eBooks, Jun 13, 1996

CHAPTER 9 Violence and the assignment of property rights on two Brazilian frontiers Lee J. Alston... more CHAPTER 9 Violence and the assignment of property rights on two Brazilian frontiers Lee J. Alston University of Colorado and University of Illinois Gary D. Libecap University of Arizona and NBER Robert Schneider World Bank 1 Introduction Frontiers are often associated with ...

Research paper thumbnail of Institutional and Organizational Analysis: Concepts and Applications

Research paper thumbnail of The Dynamics of Economic and Political Development

Research paper thumbnail of The Judicial System

Cambridge University Press eBooks, Aug 4, 2018

Research paper thumbnail of Good and Faithful Labor: From Slavery to Sharecropping in the Natchez District, 1860–1890. By Ronald L. F. Davis. Westport, Connecticut: Greenwood Press, 1982. Pp. xx, 225. $25.00

The Journal of Economic History, Jun 1, 1983

Research paper thumbnail of Institutions, Institutional Change and Economic Performance

Journal of Economic Behavior and Organization, Jun 1, 1992

PUBLISHED BY THE PRESS SYNDICATE OF THE UNIVERSITY OF CAMBRIDGE The Pitt Building, Trumpington St... more PUBLISHED BY THE PRESS SYNDICATE OF THE UNIVERSITY OF CAMBRIDGE The Pitt Building, Trumpington Street, Cambridge, United Kingdom CAMBRIDGE UNIVERSITY PRESS The Edinburgh Building, Cambridge CB2 2RU, UK 40 West 20th Street, New York, NY ...

Research paper thumbnail of New Institutional Economics

The New Palgrave Dictionary of Economics, 2008

Research paper thumbnail of The Effectiveness of Government Policies to Alleviate Agricultural Distress, 1925-1939

Research paper thumbnail of Leadership and Organizational Hierarchies

SSRN Electronic Journal, 2020

To understand leadership, it is necessary to understand the purpose of an organization. Organizat... more To understand leadership, it is necessary to understand the purpose of an organization. Organizations are hierarchies with leaders at the top. Why do we have leaders instead of an algorithm making decisions? The theory of the firm recognizes benefits to centralizing authority but these organizational benefits from hierarchy have not been clearly separated from the specific contributions of leaders. Leadership is the ability to successfully manage transaction costs of an organization. Prominent amongst organizational transaction costs are agency and coordination costs. The balance between these two types of costs depends on the purpose of the organization. We hypothesize that changing leaders is likely to have a larger effect within organizations with relatively lower scope or scale of purpose because of the way in which decision rights tend to be relatively concentrated in such organizations. We test our hypotheses with data on NFL coaches, and deans of business and law schools.

Research paper thumbnail of Beyond Institutions: Beliefs and Leadership

The Journal of Economic History, 2017

Beliefs shape the choices of institutions. Beliefs are generally stable, but shocks that cause su... more Beliefs shape the choices of institutions. Beliefs are generally stable, but shocks that cause sufficiently unexpected economic and political outcomes make beliefs malleable. Within these windows of opportunity, leadership can play a role in shaping a new belief among the dominant organizations that in turn generates new institutions and over time a possible transition to a new developmental trajectory.

Research paper thumbnail of Shaping Welfare Policy

Research paper thumbnail of Institutions and property rights across time and space: lessons from Eastern Europe and Latin America

Liberalization and its Consequences

The essays in this volume describe, analyse and compare the achievements and the failures of soci... more The essays in this volume describe, analyse and compare the achievements and the failures of societies that adopted market-based economies within a democratic polity after a long period of communist rule (Russia and Eastern Europe) or military authoritarianism (Latin America). Together, they also trace the rocky course of liberal economic policies over the whole twentieth century.

Research paper thumbnail of The impact of paternalism on racial land rental differences in the USA

Institutions, Contracts and Organizations

Research paper thumbnail of Brazil in Transition: Beliefs, Leadership, and Institutional Change

Research paper thumbnail of Chapter 5. Cardoso Seizes a Window of Opportunity (1993–2002)

Research paper thumbnail of New Approaches to Economic and Social History

Research paper thumbnail of Toward an understanding of property rights

Empirical Studies in Institutional Change

Research paper thumbnail of A Deplorable Scarcity: The Failure of Industralization in the Slave Economy

The American Historical Review, 1982

Research paper thumbnail of The economics of rural organization: Theory, practice and policy

Journal of Development Economics, Aug 1, 1995

Research paper thumbnail of Southern Paternalism and the American Welfare State: Economics, Politics, and Institutions in the South, 1865-1965

Southern Economic Journal, Oct 1, 1999

Research paper thumbnail of Violence and the assignment of property rights on two Brazilian frontiers

Cambridge University Press eBooks, Jun 13, 1996

CHAPTER 9 Violence and the assignment of property rights on two Brazilian frontiers Lee J. Alston... more CHAPTER 9 Violence and the assignment of property rights on two Brazilian frontiers Lee J. Alston University of Colorado and University of Illinois Gary D. Libecap University of Arizona and NBER Robert Schneider World Bank 1 Introduction Frontiers are often associated with ...

Research paper thumbnail of Institutional and Organizational Analysis: Concepts and Applications

Research paper thumbnail of The Dynamics of Economic and Political Development

Research paper thumbnail of The Judicial System

Cambridge University Press eBooks, Aug 4, 2018

Research paper thumbnail of Good and Faithful Labor: From Slavery to Sharecropping in the Natchez District, 1860–1890. By Ronald L. F. Davis. Westport, Connecticut: Greenwood Press, 1982. Pp. xx, 225. $25.00

The Journal of Economic History, Jun 1, 1983

Research paper thumbnail of Institutions, Institutional Change and Economic Performance

Journal of Economic Behavior and Organization, Jun 1, 1992

PUBLISHED BY THE PRESS SYNDICATE OF THE UNIVERSITY OF CAMBRIDGE The Pitt Building, Trumpington St... more PUBLISHED BY THE PRESS SYNDICATE OF THE UNIVERSITY OF CAMBRIDGE The Pitt Building, Trumpington Street, Cambridge, United Kingdom CAMBRIDGE UNIVERSITY PRESS The Edinburgh Building, Cambridge CB2 2RU, UK 40 West 20th Street, New York, NY ...

Research paper thumbnail of New Institutional Economics

The New Palgrave Dictionary of Economics, 2008

Research paper thumbnail of The Effectiveness of Government Policies to Alleviate Agricultural Distress, 1925-1939

Research paper thumbnail of Leadership and Organizational Hierarchies

SSRN Electronic Journal, 2020

To understand leadership, it is necessary to understand the purpose of an organization. Organizat... more To understand leadership, it is necessary to understand the purpose of an organization. Organizations are hierarchies with leaders at the top. Why do we have leaders instead of an algorithm making decisions? The theory of the firm recognizes benefits to centralizing authority but these organizational benefits from hierarchy have not been clearly separated from the specific contributions of leaders. Leadership is the ability to successfully manage transaction costs of an organization. Prominent amongst organizational transaction costs are agency and coordination costs. The balance between these two types of costs depends on the purpose of the organization. We hypothesize that changing leaders is likely to have a larger effect within organizations with relatively lower scope or scale of purpose because of the way in which decision rights tend to be relatively concentrated in such organizations. We test our hypotheses with data on NFL coaches, and deans of business and law schools.

Research paper thumbnail of Beyond Institutions: Beliefs and Leadership

The Journal of Economic History, 2017

Beliefs shape the choices of institutions. Beliefs are generally stable, but shocks that cause su... more Beliefs shape the choices of institutions. Beliefs are generally stable, but shocks that cause sufficiently unexpected economic and political outcomes make beliefs malleable. Within these windows of opportunity, leadership can play a role in shaping a new belief among the dominant organizations that in turn generates new institutions and over time a possible transition to a new developmental trajectory.

Research paper thumbnail of Shaping Welfare Policy

Research paper thumbnail of Institutions and property rights across time and space: lessons from Eastern Europe and Latin America

Liberalization and its Consequences

The essays in this volume describe, analyse and compare the achievements and the failures of soci... more The essays in this volume describe, analyse and compare the achievements and the failures of societies that adopted market-based economies within a democratic polity after a long period of communist rule (Russia and Eastern Europe) or military authoritarianism (Latin America). Together, they also trace the rocky course of liberal economic policies over the whole twentieth century.

Research paper thumbnail of The impact of paternalism on racial land rental differences in the USA

Institutions, Contracts and Organizations

Research paper thumbnail of Brazil in Transition: Beliefs, Leadership, and Institutional Change

Research paper thumbnail of Chapter 5. Cardoso Seizes a Window of Opportunity (1993–2002)

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