The Institutional-Transaction-Cost Framework for Public Policy Analysis

Washington University Working Paper No. OLIN-97-19

34 Pages Posted: 27 Apr 1998

See all articles by Dale B. Thompson

Dale B. Thompson

University of St. Thomas - Department of Ethics & Business Law

Date Written: April 1998

Abstract

This article presents the institutional-transaction-cost framework for public policy analysis. While many economists have considered institutional effects, none has presented a complete view of how these institutions affect the desirability of policies. By integrating many diverse insights into a single framework, this article provides a means for examining the role of the complete range of institutional factors. It offers a cost effectiveness framework for systematically comparing policies over costs incurred during their enactment, implementation, enforcement, and operation. It also provides a checklist of variables and parameters that are necessary to construct estimates of these costs. With these estimates, an analyst can properly weigh the relevance of these institutional factors. This article then offers two comparisons of water quality policies to demonstrate how this framework is used.

JEL Classification: L50, H10, K23, Q25

Suggested Citation

Thompson, Dale B., The Institutional-Transaction-Cost Framework for Public Policy Analysis (April 1998). Washington University Working Paper No. OLIN-97-19, Available at SSRN: https://ssrn.com/abstract=80308 or http://dx.doi.org/10.2139/ssrn.80308

Dale B. Thompson (Contact Author)

University of St. Thomas - Department of Ethics & Business Law ( email )

Opus College of Business
MCH 316
St. Paul, MN 55105
United States
651-962-5195 (Phone)

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