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Aid, ethics, and the Samaritan's dilemma: strategic courage in constitutional entrepreneurship

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  • SKARBEK, EMILY C.

Abstract

Private constitutional rules can mitigate the Samaritan's Dilemma, a widespread cause of failure of aid and humanitarian efforts. To understand how private organizations can adopt rules that help overcome this dilemma, I provide evidence on an association formed to govern poor relief in urban Chicago from the 1850s to 1880s. I show how a particular set of shared ethical values led to the adoption of constitutional rules governing the organization. I then show that these rules were specific in their ability to mitigate the Samaritan's Dilemma problem inherent to administering aid. The argument advances the understanding of private institutional structures by demonstrating how rules can be designed in the private spheres to solve specific social dilemmas that plague state-led efforts to achieve similar goals.

Suggested Citation

  • Skarbek, Emily C., 2016. "Aid, ethics, and the Samaritan's dilemma: strategic courage in constitutional entrepreneurship," Journal of Institutional Economics, Cambridge University Press, vol. 12(2), pages 371-393, June.
    • Handle: RePEc:cup:jinsec:v:12:y:2016:i:02:p:371-393_00
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    Cited by:

    1. Stefano Dughera & Alain Marciano, 2022. "Altruism and Strategic Courage. Inside Buchanan's Samaritan's Dilemma," Working Papers hal-03684249, HAL.
    2. Adam Martin, 2020. "The subjectivist-contrarian position," Public Choice, Springer, vol. 183(3), pages 479-494, June.
    3. David S. Lucas, 2017. "Federal homelessness policy: A robust political economy approach," The Review of Austrian Economics, Springer;Society for the Development of Austrian Economics, vol. 30(3), pages 277-303, September.
    4. Cai, Meina & Caskey, Gregory W. & Cowen, Nick & Murtazashvili, Ilia & Murtazashvili, Jennifer Brick & Salahodjaev, Raufhon, 2022. "Individualism, economic freedom, and charitable giving," Journal of Economic Behavior & Organization, Elsevier, vol. 200(C), pages 868-884.
    5. Stefano Dughera & Alain Marciano, 2023. "Inside Buchanan's Samaritan's Dilemma: altruism, strategic courage and ethics of responsibility," Economics of Governance, Springer, vol. 24(2), pages 207-233, June.
    6. Alain Marciano, 2022. "Sado-Masochism in Buchanan's Samaritan's Dilemma. A Constitutional Perspective," Post-Print hal-03683854, HAL.
    7. Alain Marciano, 2023. "The Political Economy of Buchanan's Samaritan's Dilemma," Springer Books, in: Martin A. Leroch & Florian Rupp (ed.), Power and Responsibility, pages 345-357, Springer.
    8. Stefano Dughera & Alain Marciano, 2020. "Altruism, predation and the Samaritan's dilemma," Working Papers hal-02550432, HAL.
    9. Hudik, Marek, 2021. "Push factors of endogenous institutional change," Journal of Economic Behavior & Organization, Elsevier, vol. 189(C), pages 504-514.
    10. Alexander W. Salter, 2020. "Private Prerogative, Public Purpose: Political Entrepreneurship and Management in Frederick the Great’s Anti-Machiavel," Journal of Private Enterprise, The Association of Private Enterprise Education, vol. 35(Spring 20), pages 1-28.

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