This collection of essays addresses questions of the theory of the firm and international business. The first section deals with theoretical issues underpinning multinational enterprise. These are the issues of information, re-engineering and change management and international trade. The second section concentrates on the inter-firm relationships of multinationals, assessing the interplay of co-operation and adversarial behaviour. The third section deals with applications of the principles presented in the first two sections. The applications concern the defence equipment industry the world automobile industry and corporate governance under European Union Regulations.

Economics has a very strong paradigm, grounded in rational choice behavior and concepts of equilibrium in markets. But it has its weaknesses. These were never more apparent than in recent years after the failure to predict, or even understand the financial crisis of 2007-8 and the subsequent crisis of the euro. Exactly what these weaknesses are is of course the subject of much debate. But the crisis and the associated failures of the dominant paradigm have had at least one salutary side effect, of providing room for other ways of thinking to come forward and to be heard. This volume focuses on alternative approaches to public economics. It surveys a number of alternative approaches, and also provides some unusual perspectives. It includes contributions by well known economists such as Giorgio Brosio and Pierre Salmon, and a chapter by Coco and Fedeli employing a Marxian economic approach to public economics. Some of the chapters are very novel, including two chapters on cognitive dissonance and one on the role of memory in modeling cycles of extreme events. There are also chapters on Austrian economics. And there is a welcome discussion of economic approaches to religion and values, including a chapter on religion by the distinguished economist Dennis Mueller, and contributions on the role of values and ethics in politics and public economics. All in all, the book provides a most welcome sourcebook of new and sometimes very different ways of thinking about public economics.' - Ronald Wintrobe, Western UniversityThis comprehensive and thought-provoking Handbook reviews public sector economics from pluralist perspectives that either complement or reach beyond mainstream views. The book takes a comprehensive interdisciplinary approach, drawing on economic elements in the fields of philosophy, sociology, psychology, history and law. The expert contributors present new methodological approaches across these disciplines in five distinct sections: - 'Revisiting the Theoretical Foundations' compares and contrasts Austrians, Marxists, public choice theorists and Keynesians - 'Revisiting the Values' is concerned with justice, welfare, religions and civil rights - 'Beyond Rationalistic Rational Choice' includes chapters devoted to memory, information and group motivation - The final sections on 'Optimal Government and Government Failure' and 'Public Economics of Public Bads' deal with competition among governments, their suboptimal size, regulation, corruption, the informal economy, cognitive dissonance, rent seeking, the UN and criminal cycles. Academics, researchers and students with an interest in economics - particularly public sector economics and Austrian economics - and public policy will find this Handbook to be an invaluable reference tool. Contributors: F. Acacia, J. Alm, G. Brady, G. Brosio, M. Caputo, M. Casson, G. Coco, M. Cubel Sanchez, S. Fedeli, M. Florio, F. Forte, N. Goldschmit, A. Habisch, M. Holler, J. Huerta de Soto, J.P. Jimenez, A. Koziashvili, M.A. Leroch, C. Magazzino, M. Mantovani, D. Montolio, R. Mudami, D.C. Mueller, S. Nitzan, D.M.A. Patti, P. Salin, P. Salmon, F. Sobbrio, V. Tanzi, Y. Tobol, B.A. Wickstroem, R. Zanola

In recent years there has been a growth in work on the organization of the firm. The same period has also seen a corresponding rise in literature dealing with the organization of the multinational firm, but the two literatures have developed quite separately, even though insights from each have much to offer the other. This unique collection of essays from respected academics aims to bridge this gap, addressing questions of the theory of the firm and international business. The material is presented in three sections: * The first section deals with theoretical issues underpinning multinational enterprise. These are the issues of information, re-engineering and change management and international trade. * The second section concentrates on the inter-firm relationships of multinationals, assessing the interplay of co-operation and adversarial behaviour. * The third section deals with applications of the principles presented in the first two sections. The applications concern the defence equipment industry, the world automobile industry and corporate governance under European Union Regulations. The Organisation of the Firm is aimed at researchers and students in the field of international business, and is likely to appeal to advanced undergraduates and postgraduates, as well as academics.

This book focuses on the dialectics between spatio-organisational gaps and local contexts that characterise cross-border investments. "Interspatial" investments - be it mergers & acquisitions (M&A) or greenfield investments - are usually characterised by what is referred to as "otherness", i.e. organisational and cultural distances of the firms involved in relation to their regional contexts. At the same time, economic, political and socio-cultural linkages are decisive for attracting cross-border investments to regions and for providing firms with conditions supportive of their market success. As a consequence of being locked into complex structures of proximities, cross-border investments are situated in contested terrain. This terrain triggers learning processes in both regional actors and investors, which can result in the convergence of mindsets and organisational issues. This book is unique in that it combines interspace (defined as the distance between the new owner and the cross-border venture), place (the target region), interpretation (perception and understanding of the investment by the actors involved) and context (institutions, actor networks and interaction), thus offering better understanding of recent processes of globalisation. Crossing disciplinary boundaries by integrating economic geography and management studies, the volume adopts an innovative and spatially informed perspective on foreign direct investments (FDI). This perspective will be of great value to scholars, students and practitioners. The volume is inventive in its approach in that it offers fresh readings from interdisciplinary theoretical approaches and combines these with valuable empirical insights from developed as well as Emerging Economies.

This book focuses on the dialectics between spatio-organisational gaps and local contexts that characterise cross-border investments. "Interspatial" investments - be it mergers & acquisitions (M&A) or greenfield investments - are usually characterised by what is referred to as "otherness", i.e. organisational and cultural distances of the firms involved in relation to their regional contexts. At the same time, economic, political and socio-cultural linkages are decisive for attracting cross-border investments to regions and for providing firms with conditions supportive of their market success. As a consequence of being locked into complex structures of proximities, cross-border investments are situated in contested terrain. This terrain triggers learning processes in both regional actors and investors, which can result in the convergence of mindsets and organisational issues. This book is unique in that it combines interspace (defined as the distance between the new owner and the cross-border venture), place (the target region), interpretation (perception and understanding of the investment by the actors involved) and context (institutions, actor networks and interaction), thus offering better understanding of recent processes of globalisation. Crossing disciplinary boundaries by integrating economic geography and management studies, the volume adopts an innovative and spatially informed perspective on foreign direct investments (FDI). This perspective will be of great value to scholars, students and practitioners. The volume is inventive in its approach in that it offers fresh readings from interdisciplinary theoretical approaches and combines these with valuable empirical insights from developed as well as Emerging Economies.

The design of an electoral system is fundamental to any democracy. It is through electoral systems that the commitment of a society to a political system is achieved. The peculiarities of an electoral system assume significant importance in periods in which democratic polities seem caught between a crisis of confidence in their representative systems and mass apathy over the product of government - as has recently occurred in Italy. Electoral rules constrain available choice alternatives and therefore have profound effects on governance of a country since different electoral rules generate different outcome patterns even with no change in the identity of candidates. The two most common electoral schemes are proportional representation and plurality. The theoretical debate concerning these two systems is of intense interest not least because of the importance of finding a stable, democratic and representative institutional structure that can be employed worldwide. This topical book analyses the change of electoral rules in Italy from proportional representation toward plurality. While Italy is used as the illustrative case, the analysis has far-ranging theoretical and practical implications, and will therefore be of interest to academics and researchers of political economy, constitutionalism and public choice.

Global economic progress in the twentieth century, while generally encouraging, was neither continuous nor uniform. With the exception of some Asian nations, countries that were more developed at the beginning of the twentieth century still rank amongst the wealthiest nations, while countries that were poorer, still lag behind. The distinguished authors in this volume address the fundamental causes for such heterogeneous international experiences, placing particular emphasis on the role of institutions. They demonstrate how the study of economic development is increasingly linked to the development of institutions, which allow for more complex exchanges to occur in markets and societies. Institutions can be understood as rules or constraints that channel individuals' actions in specific directions, and can be formal or informal depending on their genesis. The book highlights the connection between institutions and economic welfare by examining countries at different stages of development. Although the authors' study material effects, they also look at individual well-being which is more strongly influenced by the non-material products of institutions such as opportunity, freedom and relationships. They move on to highlight the role of institutions in global business, in terms of innovation, entrepreneurship and foreign direct investment. In the concluding chapters they focus on the actual process of transition from one institutional framework to another. Amongst other examples, they examine reforms to international financial institutions and constitutional adjustments in transition countries. This varied yet highly topical book will be invaluable to institutional and public-choice economists, students and researchers of the theory and policy of international business, and social and political scientists interested in the role and evolution of institutions.

Economics has a very strong paradigm, grounded in rational choice behavior and concepts of equilibrium in markets. But it has its weaknesses. These were never more apparent than in recent years after the failure to predict, or even understand the financial crisis of 2007-8 and the subsequent crisis of the euro. Exactly what these weaknesses are is of course the subject of much debate. But the crisis and the associated failures of the dominant paradigm have had at least one salutary side effect, of providing room for other ways of thinking to come forward and to be heard. This volume focuses on alternative approaches to public economics. It surveys a number of alternative approaches, and also provides some unusual perspectives. It includes contributions by well known economists such as Giorgio Brosio and Pierre Salmon, and a chapter by Coco and Fedeli employing a Marxian economic approach to public economics. Some of the chapters are very novel, including two chapters on cognitive dissonance and one on the role of memory in modeling cycles of extreme events. There are also chapters on Austrian economics. And there is a welcome discussion of economic approaches to religion and values, including a chapter on religion by the distinguished economist Dennis Mueller, and contributions on the role of values and ethics in politics and public economics. All in all, the book provides a most welcome sourcebook of new and sometimes very different ways of thinking about public economics.' - Ronald Wintrobe, Western UniversityThis comprehensive and thought-provoking Handbook reviews public sector economics from pluralist perspectives that either complement or reach beyond mainstream views. The book takes a comprehensive interdisciplinary approach, drawing on economic elements in the fields of philosophy, sociology, psychology, history and law. The expert contributors present new methodological approaches across these disciplines in five distinct sections: - 'Revisiting the Theoretical Foundations' compares and contrasts Austrians, Marxists, public choice theorists and Keynesians - 'Revisiting the Values' is concerned with justice, welfare, religions and civil rights - 'Beyond Rationalistic Rational Choice' includes chapters devoted to memory, information and group motivation - The final sections on 'Optimal Government and Government Failure' and 'Public Economics of Public Bads' deal with competition among governments, their suboptimal size, regulation, corruption, the informal economy, cognitive dissonance, rent seeking, the UN and criminal cycles. Academics, researchers and students with an interest in economics - particularly public sector economics and Austrian economics - and public policy will find this Handbook to be an invaluable reference tool. Contributors: F. Acacia, J. Alm, G. Brady, G. Brosio, M. Caputo, M. Casson, G. Coco, M. Cubel Sanchez, S. Fedeli, M. Florio, F. Forte, N. Goldschmit, A. Habisch, M. Holler, J. Huerta de Soto, J.P. Jimenez, A. Koziashvili, M.A. Leroch, C. Magazzino, M. Mantovani, D. Montolio, R. Mudami, D.C. Mueller, S. Nitzan, D.M.A. Patti, P. Salin, P. Salmon, F. Sobbrio, V. Tanzi, Y. Tobol, B.A. Wickstroem, R. Zanola

Arguably, the two most important forces affecting the world economy in the closing decades of the 20th century were globalization and privatization. Here, privatization refers to the retreat of the state from the economic arena, while globalization refers to the worldwide spread of efficient market-based systems and the consequent growth of multinational firms. The twin forces of privatization and globalization have proceeded in parallel, but have nonetheless had significant interactions with one another. (i) the spectacular collapse of the state-run socialist economies; (ii) the transfer of state-run enterprises to market governance in much of Western Europe; and (iii) the more subtle dismantling of state controls and legal monopolies in some sectors in the United States.

Polarization in Western democracies and the collapse of centrally planned economies have led to calls for a redefinition of the state's core functions. This collection explores shifting conceptions of constitutional political economy anchoring the state from the viewpoints of theory, systems, and applications, with a view toward identifying why changes may be desirable and how these might be implemented. Nobel Laureate James M. Buchanan offers a foreword to the work and coauthors a chapter on theory of constitutional rules.

Polarization in Western democracies and the collapse of centrally planned economies have led to calls for a redefinition of the state's core functions. This collection explores shifting conceptions of constitutional political economy anchoring the state from the viewpoints of theory, systems, and applications, with a view toward identifying why changes may be desirable and how these might be implemented. Nobel Laureate James M. Buchanan offers a foreword to the work and coauthors a chapter on theory of constitutional rules.