INSTITUTIONAL THEORY AND MODERN CAPITALISM

摘要

Modern theory identifies several sources of economic growth, such as capital accumulation, new technologies, secure property rights and contracts, and absence of rent seeking. This paper introduces new social technologies as yet another source of growth and emphasizes our incomplete knowledge of social system. It hinders the building of new institutions. The author introduces a framework for analyzing institutional policy and uses the case of modern biotechnologies to explain how uncertainty about social technologies, persuasion, and competing beliefs influence the evolution of property rights.