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Economics of Information and the Theory of Economic Development

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  • Joseph E. Stiglitz

Abstract

This paper shows how recent developments in the Economics of Information can provide insights into economic relations in less developed countries, and how they can provide explanations for institutions which, in neoclassical theory, appear anomalous and/or inefficient. Sharecropping and other tenancy relationships in the rural sector and wage determination and urban unemployment are both investigated within this perspective.

Suggested Citation

  • Joseph E. Stiglitz, 1985. "Economics of Information and the Theory of Economic Development," NBER Working Papers 1566, National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc.
  • Handle: RePEc:nbr:nberwo:1566
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    1. Yellen, Janet L, 1984. "Efficiency Wage Models of Unemployment," American Economic Review, American Economic Association, vol. 74(2), pages 200-205, May.
    2. Raaj Kumar Sah & Joseph E. Stiglitz, 1984. "Taxation and Pricing of Agricultural and Industrial Goods," NBER Working Papers 1338, National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc.
    3. Weiss, Andrew W, 1980. "Job Queues and Layoffs in Labor Markets with Flexible Wages," Journal of Political Economy, University of Chicago Press, vol. 88(3), pages 526-538, June.
    4. Stiglitz, Joseph E & Weiss, Andrew, 1983. "Incentive Effects of Terminations: Applications to the Credit and Labor Markets," American Economic Review, American Economic Association, vol. 73(5), pages 912-927, December.
    5. Braverman, Avishay & Stiglitz, Joseph E, 1982. "Sharecropping and the Interlinking of Agrarian Markets," American Economic Review, American Economic Association, vol. 72(4), pages 695-715, September.
    6. D. Gale Johnson, 1950. "Resource Allocation under Share Contracts," Journal of Political Economy, University of Chicago Press, vol. 58(2), pages 111-111.
    7. Joseph E. Stiglitz, 1974. "Incentives and Risk Sharing in Sharecropping," The Review of Economic Studies, Review of Economic Studies Ltd, vol. 41(2), pages 219-255.
    8. Stigler, George J., 2011. "Economics of Information," Ekonomicheskaya Politika / Economic Policy, Russian Presidential Academy of National Economy and Public Administration, vol. 5, pages 35-49.
    9. Stiglitz, Joseph E, 1975. "The Theory of "Screening," Education, and the Distribution of Income," American Economic Review, American Economic Association, vol. 65(3), pages 283-300, June.
    10. Arnott, Richard & Stiglitz, Joseph E., 1986. "Moral hazard and optimal commodity taxation," Journal of Public Economics, Elsevier, vol. 29(1), pages 1-24, February.
    11. Akerlof, George A, 1984. "Gift Exchange and Efficiency-Wage Theory: Four Views," American Economic Review, American Economic Association, vol. 74(2), pages 79-83, May.
    12. Stiglitz, J.E., 1988. "Sharecropping," Papers 11, Princeton, Woodrow Wilson School - Discussion Paper.
    13. Stiglitz, Joseph E, 1976. "The Efficiency Wage Hypothesis, Surplus Labour, and the Distribution of Income in L.D.C.s," Oxford Economic Papers, Oxford University Press, vol. 28(2), pages 185-207, July.
    14. Joseph E. Stiglitz, 1984. "Theories of Wage Rigidity," NBER Working Papers 1442, National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc.
    15. George A. Akerlof, 1970. "The Market for "Lemons": Quality Uncertainty and the Market Mechanism," The Quarterly Journal of Economics, President and Fellows of Harvard College, vol. 84(3), pages 488-500.
    16. Richard Arnott & Joseph Stiglitz, 1991. "Equilibrium in Competitive Insurance Markets with Moral Hazard," NBER Working Papers 3588, National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc.
    17. Calvo, Guillermo, 1979. "Quasi-Walrasian Theories of Unemployment," American Economic Review, American Economic Association, vol. 69(2), pages 102-107, May.
    18. Bruce C. Greenwald & Joseph E. Stiglitz, 1984. "Pecuniary & Market Mediated Externalities: Towards a General Theory of the Welfare Economics & Economies with Imperfect Information & Incomplete Mrkts," NBER Working Papers 1304, National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc.
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    Cited by:

    1. Sylvain Chabe-Ferret & Julien Gourdon & Mohamed Ali Marouani & Tancrède Voituriez, 2007. "Trade-Induced Changes in Economic Inequality: Assessment Issues and Policy Implications for Developing Countries," Working Papers DT/2007/11, DIAL (Développement, Institutions et Mondialisation).
    2. da Rocha Braga, Bruno, 2022. "The Generative Nature of the Firm," MPRA Paper 117007, University Library of Munich, Germany, revised 09 Apr 2023.
    3. Mohinder S. Mudahar & Raisuddin Ahmed, 2010. "Government and Rural Transformation : Role of Public Spending and Policies in Bangladesh," World Bank Publications - Books, The World Bank Group, number 16356.
    4. Sharif Moghaddasi , Alireza & Mousavi Jahromi , Yeganeh, 2017. "Short-run and Long-run Effects of Financial Intermediation on Economic Growth," Journal of Money and Economy, Monetary and Banking Research Institute, Central Bank of the Islamic Republic of Iran, vol. 12(1), pages 89-105, January.
    5. João Mosca, 2012. "Mozambican Economy 2001-2010: a mix of economic populism and wild market / Economia Moçambicana 2001-2010: um mix de Populismo Económico e Mercardo Selvagem," CEsA Working Papers 114, CEsA - Centre for African and Development Studies.
    6. Gagliardi, Francesca, 2008. "Institutions and economic change: A critical survey of the new institutional approaches and empirical evidence," Journal of Behavioral and Experimental Economics (formerly The Journal of Socio-Economics), Elsevier, vol. 37(1), pages 416-443, February.
    7. Amavilah, Voxi Heinrich, 2007. "The effects of technology-as-knowledge on the economic performance of developing countries: An econometric analysis using annual publications data for Botswana, Namibia, and South Africa, 1976-2004," MPRA Paper 3482, University Library of Munich, Germany.
    8. Marc Steffen Rapp & Iuliia A. Udoieva, 2018. "What matters in the finance–growth nexus of advanced economies? Evidence from OECD countries," Applied Economics, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 50(6), pages 676-690, February.
    9. Peter L. Swan & Mikhail S. Bernstam, 1988. "The Political Economy of the Symbiosis between Labour Market Regulation and the Social Welfare System," Australian Journal of Management, Australian School of Business, vol. 13(2), pages 177-201, December.
    10. Afeikhena Jerome & Olawale Ogunkola, 2000. "Characteristics and Behavior of African Commodity/Product Markets and Market Institutions and Their Consequences for Economic Growth," CID Working Papers 35, Center for International Development at Harvard University.
    11. M Mafizur Rahman & M Salahuddin, 2010. "The determinants of economic growth in Pakistan: Does stock market development play a major role?," Economic Issues Journal Articles, Economic Issues, vol. 15(2), pages 69-86, September.

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