Book cover of Institutions, Institutional Change and Economic Performance

Book description

Continuing his groundbreaking analysis of economic structures, Douglass North develops an analytical framework for explaining the ways in which institutions and institutional change affect the performance of economies, both at a given time and over time. Institutions exist, he argues, due to the uncertainties involved in human interaction; they are…

When you buy books, we may earn a commission that helps keep our lights on (or join the rebellion as a member).

Why read it?

1 author picked Institutions, Institutional Change and Economic Performance as one of their favorite books. Why do they recommend it?

“Institutions are the rules of the game,” according to Douglas North, economic historian and Nobel Laureate.

Once created, institutions may be changed, but their legacy can be powerful. Economic history is a consequence of a dynamic, sometimes disruptive, process of institutional change, one for which a path to better institutions is not assured.

Exchange involves risks and uncertainty. In centuries past, kinship ties helped reduce uncertainty for exchange in insular communities. As exchange across larger distances expanded to engage with more distant communities, alternatives institutions were needed, such as contracts, laws, courts.

Whether one’s interest is promoting welfare, equity, sustainability,…

If you love Institutions, Institutional Change and Economic Performance...

Book cover of The Rosewood Penny

The Rosewood Penny by J.S. Fields,

2023 Queer Indie Award Nominee!

The dragons of Yuro have been hunted to extinction.

On a small, isolated island, in a reclusive forest, lives bandit leader Marani and her brother Jacks. With their outlaw band they rob from the rich to feed themselves, raiding carriages and dodging the occasional vindictive…

Want books like Institutions, Institutional Change and Economic Performance?

Our community of 12,000+ authors has personally recommended 100 books like Institutions, Institutional Change and Economic Performance.

Browse books like Institutions, Institutional Change and Economic Performance

Book cover of The Limits of Organization
Book cover of Governing the Commons
Book cover of The Evolution of Cooperation

Share your top 3 reads of 2025!

And get a beautiful page showing off your 3 favorite reads.

1,340

readers submitted
so far, will you?

📚 If you like Institutions, Institutional Change and Economic Performance, you might also like...

Book cover of Murder, Lies and Chocolate

Murder, Lies and Chocolate by Sally Berneathy,

Book 2, Death by Chocolate series.

Rodney Bradford comes into Lindsay's restaurant, offers to buy her small house for double its value, eats her brownies, and drops dead on the sidewalk in front. Next, her almost-ex-husband offers to sign the divorce papers, but only if she'll give him her small,…

Book cover of Tangle of Time

Tangle of Time by Maureen Thorpe,

A spellbinding journey through time and cultures.

When Annie Thornton, midwife and apprentice witch, falls through time to a 15th-century Yorkshire village with her telepathic cat, Rosamund, she befriends Will and Jack, two soldiers returning from the French Wars. Mistress Meg, Annie’s ancestral aunt living in the 15th century, is…

5 book lists we think you will like!