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Rent-seeking incentives in share contests

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  • Dickson, Alex
  • MacKenzie, Ian A.
  • Sekeris, Petros G.

Abstract

This article investigates share contests. In our framework, we allow contestants to have more general preferences than have been used in the literature. Previous approaches have the unfortunate characteristic that contestants' marginal rates of substitution between the rent share allocated by the contest and their effort is constant regardless of the size of the rent share. This results in a conventional wisdom: larger rents command more effort. By providing a more general framework, we show the reverse may also be true and we derive the conditions under which this is the case. Our approach then allows us to rationalize, within a standard contest framework, observations that rents might be more hotly contested when they become scarcer, as has evidently been the case with the recent global contraction of public funds available for public policy.

Suggested Citation

  • Dickson, Alex & MacKenzie, Ian A. & Sekeris, Petros G., 2018. "Rent-seeking incentives in share contests," Journal of Public Economics, Elsevier, vol. 166(C), pages 53-62.
    • Handle: RePEc:eee:pubeco:v:166:y:2018:i:c:p:53-62
    DOI: 10.1016/j.jpubeco.2018.08.004
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    Cited by:

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    2. Alex Dickson & Ian A. MacKenzie, 2022. "Permit Markets with Political and Market Distortions," Environmental & Resource Economics, Springer;European Association of Environmental and Resource Economists, vol. 82(1), pages 227-255, May.
    3. Serhii Bardash & Tetiana Osadcha, 2021. "Ontology of Variability of Accounting for Financial Rent," Oblik i finansi, Institute of Accounting and Finance, issue 2, pages 5-10, June.
    4. Du, Weijian & Fan, Yuhuan & Liang, Sunfan & Li, Mengjie, 2023. "The power of belief: Religious traditions and rent-seeking of polluting enterprises in China," Finance Research Letters, Elsevier, vol. 54(C).
    5. Kjell Hausken, 2021. "Axiomatizing additive multi-effort contests," SN Business & Economics, Springer, vol. 1(11), pages 1-12, November.
    6. Alex Dickson & Ian A. MacKenzie & Petros G. Sekeris, 2022. "Rent Dissipation in Simple Tullock Contests," Games, MDPI, vol. 13(6), pages 1-11, December.
    7. Liqun Liu & Nicolas Treich, 2021. "Optimality of winner-take-all contests: the role of attitudes toward risk," Journal of Risk and Uncertainty, Springer, vol. 63(1), pages 1-25, August.
    8. Du, Weijian & Li, Mengjie & Wang, Faming, 2020. "Role of rent-seeking or technological progress in maintaining the monopoly power of energy enterprises: An empirical analysis based on micro-data from China," Energy, Elsevier, vol. 202(C).
    9. Abbas Khandan, 2022. "Externalities in the rent-seeking strategies of lobbying and bribery," Public Sector Economics, Institute of Public Finance, vol. 46(3), pages 421-450.
    10. Alex Dickson & Ian MacKenzie & Petros G Sekeris, 2020. "Rent dissipation in share contests," Working Papers 2014, University of Strathclyde Business School, Department of Economics.
    11. Alex Dickson & Ian A MacKenzie & Petros G Sekeris, 2018. "The role of markets and preferences on resource conflicts," Working Papers 1819, University of Strathclyde Business School, Department of Economics.

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    More about this item

    Keywords

    Contest; General preferences; Public policy;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • C72 - Mathematical and Quantitative Methods - - Game Theory and Bargaining Theory - - - Noncooperative Games
    • D72 - Microeconomics - - Analysis of Collective Decision-Making - - - Political Processes: Rent-seeking, Lobbying, Elections, Legislatures, and Voting Behavior
    • H40 - Public Economics - - Publicly Provided Goods - - - General

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