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You are here: Home Teaching Previous Semesters Summer Term 2016 Constitutional Economics
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Constitutional Economics

 Lecture in Summer Semester 2016


Constitutional Economics


Prof. Dr. Bernhard Neumärker

Albert-Ludwigs-Universität Freiburg
Department for Economic Policy and Constitutional Economic Theory

 

Schedule

Lecture: Prof. Dr. Bernhard Neumärker

Time: Thu, 10-12 h
Room: HS 3219, KG III
Start: 1st week

Tutorial: MSc. Ana Helena Cavalcante

Time: Tue, 14-16h
Room: HS 1015, KG I
Start: 2nd week

 

Supplementary Tutorials: Camila Plaza


Time: Mon, 16-18h
Room: HS 1032 , KG I
Start: 3rd  week

 

Time: Tue, 16-18h
Room: HS 1142 , KG I
Start: 3rd  week

 

Target Group and Language

  • This course is designated for first-year students of the M.Sc. Economics program (economics and politics), the M.Sc. VWL program, and Diplom-Students (Hauptstudium). Exchange students are equally welcome to participate.
  • If students of other faculties (e.g. political science) wish to participate, they should contact the tutor by email before the third week of the semester.
  • Recommended prerequisites: Good knowledge of microeconomics and of the course "Economic Policy and Public Choice".
  • This module is entirely taught in English.

 

Credits: 6 ECTS

  • M.Sc. Economics: First-year course for profile ‘Economics and Politics’.
  • M.Sc. VWL (PO2014): Constitutional Economics and Competition Policy.
  • M.Sc. VWL (PO2011): Wirtschaftspolitisches Wahlpflichtmodul (Ordnungspolitik).
  • M.Sc. BWL (Public and Non-Profit Management): Wahlbereich VWL.
  • Diplom VWL: Hauptstudium, Pflichtfach „Wirtschaftspolitik: Ordnungspolitik“, Pflichtwahlfach „Ordnungs- und Wettbewerbspolitik“.
     

Downloads

  • Outlines and slides are provided at this website. Literature will be provided on 
  • The passwords will be provided in the first lecture and first tutorial.


Lecture:

 

Tutorial:

 

Sub-Tutorial:

 

 

Outline (tentative)

  1. Introduction
  2. The constitutional perspective in economics
    1. Constitutional and orthodox view of economics [3,4,6]
    2. The methodological hard core of constitutional analysis [4,5]
    3. Constitutional economics as a part of modern political economy [11,24]
    4. The logic of constitutional constraints [3,5]
    5. Constitutional design and constitutional reform [2,4,12,15,19,22]
    6. Constitutions as social contracts
      6.1 Explicit and implicit contracts [17,19]
      6.2 Complete and incomplete contracts [11,15,19,23]
    7. Normative and positive constitutional economics
      7.1 Emergence and stability of constitutions [1,14,17,18,20, 25]
      7.2 Economic effects of constitutional rules [21,24]
      7.3 'Optimal' constitutions [12,17,19]
  3. Applications
    1. Constitutional design of democratic institutions [1,8,12,17,25]
    2. Constitutional (liberal) Rights [17]
    3. Fiscal constitutions [3,16,19, 26]
    4. Liberal paternalism: Constitutional regulation of soft  paternalism
    5. Constitutional rules for market regulation [6,15]
    6. Constitutional change and rent-seeking [10,17]
    7. Economic policy consequences of constitutional arrangements [6,10,21]
       

References

  • [1] Acemoglu, D., Robinson, J.A.: Economic Origins of Dictatorship and Democracy, Cambridge 2006.
  • [2] Bailey, M.J.: Constitution for a Future Country, Basingstoke et al. 2001.
  • [3] Brennan, G., Buchanan, J. M.: The Power to Tax, Cambridge et al. 1980.
  • [4] Brennan, G., Buchanan, J. M.: The Reason of Rules, Cambridge et al. 1985.
  • [5] Buchanan, J. M.: The Domain of Constitutional Economics, in: Constitutional Political Economy, vol. 1, no. 1 (1990), 1-18.
  • [6] Buchanan, J. M.: The Constitution of Economic Policy, in: American Economic Review 77 (1987), 243-250.
  • [7] Buchanan, J. M.: The Limits of Liberty, Chicago 1975.
  • [8] Buchanan, J.M., Tullock, G.: The Calculus of Consent, Ann Arbor 1962.
  • [9] Caplin, A. S, Nalebuff, B. J.: On 64%-Majority Rule, in: Econometrica, vol. 56(4) (1988), 787-814.
  • [10] Cooter, R.D.: The Strategic Constitution, Princeton/N.J. et al. 2000.
  • [11] Dixit, A.K.: The Making of Economic Policy, Cambridge/Mass. 1996.
  • [12] Gersbach, H.: Designing Democracy, Berlin et al. 2005.
  • [13] Greif, A.: Institutions and the Path to the Modern Economy, Cambridge 2006.
  • [14] Hardin, R.: Liberalism, Constitutionalism, and Democracy, Oxford 1999.
  • [15] Laffont, J.-J.: Incentives and Political Economy, Oxford et al. 2000.
  • [16] Maskin, E. S., Riley, J. G.: Monopoly with incomplete information, in: RAND Journal of Economics, vol. 15, issue 2 (1985), 171-196.
  • [17] Mueller, D.C.: Public Choice III, Cambridge 2003.
  • [18] Mueller, D.C.: Constitutional Public Choice, in: Perspectives on Public Choice, Cambridge 1997.
  • [19] Neumärker, K.J.B.: Some Analytical Foundations of Constitutional Public Finance, Manuscript, Freiburg 2009.
  • [20] Neumärker, K.J.B.: Private Provision of Public Goods as Strategic Precommitment, Manuscript, Freiburg 2004.
  • [21] Persson, T., Tabellini, G.: The Economic Effects of Constitutions, Cambridge/ Mass. 2003.
  • [22] Salanié, B.: The Economics of Contracts, Cambridge et al. 2005, 2nd edition.
  • [23] Tirole, J.: Incomplete Contracts: Where do we stand?, Econometrica, vol. 67, no. 4 (1999), 741-781.
  • [24] Voigt, S.: Positive constitutional economics: A survey, in: Public Choice 90 (1997), 11–53.

 

Supplementary articles will be announced in the lecture and tutorial.

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