When Ideas Trump Interests: Preferences, World Views, and Policy Innovations
37 Pages Posted: 19 Nov 2013
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When Ideas Trump Interests: Preferences, World Views, and Policy Innovations
Date Written: November 2013
Abstract
The contemporary approach to political economy is built around vested interests -- elites, lobbies, and rent-seeking groups which get their way at the expense of the general public. The role of ideas in shaping those interests is typically ignored or downplayed. Yet each of the three components of the standard optimization problem in political economy preferences, constraints, and choice variables rely on an implicit set of ideas. Once the manner in which ideas enter these frameworks is made explicit, a much richer and more convincing set of results can be obtained. In particular, new ideas about policyor policy entrepreneurshipcan exert an independent effect on equilibrium outcomes even in the absence of changes in the configuration of political power.
Keywords: Policy Innovations, Political Economy
JEL Classification: F5, P16
Suggested Citation: Suggested Citation
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When Ideas Trump Interests: Preferences, World Views, and Policy Innovations
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