IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/bla/ehsrev/v57y2004i3p533-550.html
   My bibliography  Save this article

‘Crooks, thieves, and receivers’: transaction costs in nineteenth‐century industrial Birmingham

Author

Listed:
  • FRANCESCA CARNEVALI

Abstract

The existence of cooperation and trust between competing economic agents is taken for granted by much of the literature on industrial districts. This article explores the structure of the Birmingham jewellery‐making district and the problems created by the opportunistic behaviour of many of its members. Archival sources show that the district was plagued by endemic dishonesty and that proximity did not generate trust and cooperation. The absence of barriers to entry into the trade created a district where social sanctions could not be used to reduce moral hazard. All these factors threatened to destroy the district during the crisis of the 1880s. The article shows how firms joined together to create the Birmingham Jewellers Association, to establish and enforce ‘rules of the game’, with the aim of reducing transaction costs.

Suggested Citation

  • Francesca Carnevali, 2004. "‘Crooks, thieves, and receivers’: transaction costs in nineteenth‐century industrial Birmingham," Economic History Review, Economic History Society, vol. 57(3), pages 533-550, August.
    • Handle: RePEc:bla:ehsrev:v:57:y:2004:i:3:p:533-550
    DOI: 10.1111/j.1468-0289.2004.00287.x
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1468-0289.2004.00287.x
    Download Restriction: no
    File URL: https://libkey.io/10.1111/j.1468-0289.2004.00287.x?utm_source=ideas
    LibKey link: if access is restricted and if your library uses this service, LibKey will redirect you to where you can use your library subscription to access this item
    ---><---

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Robin Pearson & David Richardson, 2001. "Business Networking in the Industrial Revolution[Earlier ve]," Economic History Review, Economic History Society, vol. 54(4), pages 657-679, November.
    2. Maskell, Peter & Malmberg, Anders, 1999. "Localised Learning and Industrial Competitiveness," Cambridge Journal of Economics, Cambridge Political Economy Society, vol. 23(2), pages 167-185, March.
    3. John F. Wilson & Andrew Popp, 2003. "Business networking in the industrial revolution: some comments," Economic History Review, Economic History Society, vol. 56(2), pages 355-361, May.
    4. Ottati, Gabi Dei, 1994. "Trust, Interlinking Transactions and Credit in the Industrial District," Cambridge Journal of Economics, Cambridge Political Economy Society, vol. 18(6), pages 529-546, December.
    5. Robin Pearson & David Richardson, 2003. "Business networking in the industrial revolution: riposte to some comments," Economic History Review, Economic History Society, vol. 56(2), pages 362-368, May.
    6. Oliver E. Williamson, 2000. "The New Institutional Economics: Taking Stock, Looking Ahead," Journal of Economic Literature, American Economic Association, vol. 38(3), pages 595-613, September.
    7. Carroll, Glenn R. & Teece, David J. (ed.), 1999. "Firms, Markets, and Hierarchies: The Transaction Cost Perspective," OUP Catalogue, Oxford University Press, number 9780195119510.
    8. Giacomo Becattini & Marco Bellandi & Gabi Dei Ottati & Fabio Sforzi, 2003. "From Industrial Districts to Local Development," Books, Edward Elgar Publishing, number 2884.
    9. Carnevali, Francesca, 2003. "Golden Opportunities: Jewelry Making in Birmingham between Mass Production and Specialty," Enterprise & Society, Cambridge University Press, vol. 4(2), pages 272-298, June.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Citations

    Citations are extracted by the CitEc Project, subscribe to its RSS feed for this item.
    as


    Cited by:

    1. Velkar, Aashish, 2007. "Accurate measurements and design standards: consistency of design and the travel of 'facts' between heterogeneous groups," Economic History Working Papers 22518, London School of Economics and Political Science, Department of Economic History.
    2. Robert Lewis, 2009. "Industrial districts and manufacturing linkages: Chicago's printing industry, 1880–19501," Economic History Review, Economic History Society, vol. 62(2), pages 366-387, May.
    3. David Merrett & Simon Ville, 2013. "Institution Building and Variation in the Formation of the Australian Wool Market," Australian Economic History Review, Economic History Society of Australia and New Zealand, vol. 53(2), pages 146-166, July.
    4. Aleksandra Zaleśna & Agnieszka Predygier, 2021. "CSR in Clusters: Cluster Social Responsibility," Gospodarka Narodowa. The Polish Journal of Economics, Warsaw School of Economics, issue 3, pages 25-46.
    5. repec:bla:jomstd:v:47:y:2010:i:s1:p:837-858 is not listed on IDEAS

    Most related items

    These are the items that most often cite the same works as this one and are cited by the same works as this one.
    1. Roger Burt, 2003. "Freemasonry and business networking during the Victorian period," Economic History Review, Economic History Society, vol. 56(4), pages 657-688, November.
    2. Matthias Firgo & Peter Mayerhofer, 2015. "Wissens-Spillovers und regionale Entwicklung - welche strukturpolitische Ausrichtung optimiert des Wachstum?," Working Paper Reihe der AK Wien - Materialien zu Wirtschaft und Gesellschaft 144, Kammer für Arbeiter und Angestellte für Wien, Abteilung Wirtschaftswissenschaft und Statistik.
    3. Patrick W. Schmitz, 2006. "Information Gathering, Transaction Costs, and the Property Rights Approach," American Economic Review, American Economic Association, vol. 96(1), pages 422-434, March.
    4. Michael Steiner, 2004. "The Role of Clusters in Knowledge Creation and Diffusion – an Institutional Perspective," ERSA conference papers ersa04p612, European Regional Science Association.
    5. Matthias Firgo & Peter Mayerhofer, 2015. "Wissensintensive Unternehmensdienste, Wissens-Spillovers und regionales Wachstum. Teilprojekt 1: Wissens-Spillovers und regionale Entwicklung – Welche strukturpolitische Ausrichtung optimiert das Wach," WIFO Studies, WIFO, number 58342, January.
    6. Mark Lorenzen, 2007. "Social Capital and Localised Learning: Proximity and Place in Technological and Institutional Dynamics," Urban Studies, Urban Studies Journal Limited, vol. 44(4), pages 799-817, April.
    7. Heikki Marjosola, 2021. "The problem of regulatory arbitrage: A transaction cost economics perspective," Regulation & Governance, John Wiley & Sons, vol. 15(2), pages 388-407, April.
    8. Cappellin, Riccardo & Steiner, Michael, 2002. "Enlarging the scale of knowledge in innovation networks: theoretical perspectives and policy issues," ERSA conference papers ersa02p506, European Regional Science Association.
    9. Grillitsch, Markus, 2014. "Institutional Change and Economic Evolution in Regions," Papers in Innovation Studies 2014/1, Lund University, CIRCLE - Centre for Innovation Research.
    10. Pezoa-Fuentes, Claudia & Vidal-Suñé, Antoni, 2017. "Cluster perpetuation: Maintenance of competitive advantages over time. The case of Chile's large north," Resources Policy, Elsevier, vol. 54(C), pages 176-188.
    11. Mark Lorenzen, 2005. "Localized Learning and Social Capital The Geography Effect in Technological and Institutional Dynamics," DRUID Working Papers 05-22, DRUID, Copenhagen Business School, Department of Industrial Economics and Strategy/Aalborg University, Department of Business Studies.
    12. Michael Steiner & Christian Hartmann, 2006. "Organizational learning in clusters: A case study on material and immaterial dimensions of cooperation," Regional Studies, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 40(5), pages 493-506.
    13. Markus Grillitsch, 2014. "Regional Transformation: Institutional Change and Economic Evolution in Regions," ERSA conference papers ersa14p1481, European Regional Science Association.
    14. Toms, Steven, 2017. "Network preferences and the growth of the British cotton textile industry, c.1780-1914," MPRA Paper 80058, University Library of Munich, Germany.
    15. Jiang Wei & Minfei Zhou & Mark Greeven & Hongyan Qu, 2016. "Economic governance, dual networks and innovative learning in five Chinese industrial clusters," Asia Pacific Journal of Management, Springer, vol. 33(4), pages 1037-1074, December.
    16. Robin Pearson & David Richardson, 2003. "Business networking in the industrial revolution: riposte to some comments," Economic History Review, Economic History Society, vol. 56(2), pages 362-368, May.
    17. Scaringella, Laurent & Radziwon, Agnieszka, 2018. "Innovation, entrepreneurial, knowledge, and business ecosystems: Old wine in new bottles?," Technological Forecasting and Social Change, Elsevier, vol. 136(C), pages 59-87.
    18. Citera, Emanuele & Sau, Lino, 2019. "Complexity, Conventions and Instability: the role of monetary policy," Department of Economics and Statistics Cognetti de Martiis. Working Papers 201924, University of Turin.
    19. Emmanuel Yeboah-Assiamah & Kobus Muller & Kwame Ameyaw Domfeh, 2018. "‘Complex crisis’ and the rise of collaborative natural resource governance: institutional trajectory of a wildlife governance experience in Ghana," Environment, Development and Sustainability: A Multidisciplinary Approach to the Theory and Practice of Sustainable Development, Springer, vol. 20(5), pages 2205-2224, October.
    20. Eicher, Theo S. & Schreiber, Till, 2010. "Structural policies and growth: Time series evidence from a natural experiment," Journal of Development Economics, Elsevier, vol. 91(1), pages 169-179, January.

    More about this item

    Statistics

    Access and download statistics

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:bla:ehsrev:v:57:y:2004:i:3:p:533-550. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    If CitEc recognized a bibliographic reference but did not link an item in RePEc to it, you can help with this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: Wiley Content Delivery (email available below). General contact details of provider: https://edirc.repec.org/data/ehsukea.html .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.