The economic origins of government
By: Allen, R.C., Bertazzini, M.C. and Heldring, L
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Material type: 
BookPublisher: The American Economic Review Description: 113(10), Oct, 2023: p.2507-2545.
In:
The American Economic ReviewSummary: We test between cooperative and extractive theories of the origins of government. We use river shifts in southern Iraq as a natural experiment, in a new archeological panel dataset. A shift away creates a local demand for a government to coordinate because private river irrigation needs to be replaced with public canals. It disincentivizes local extraction as land is no longer productive without irrigation. Consistent with a cooperative theory of government, a river shift away led to state formation, canal construction, and the payment of tribute. We argue that the first governments coordinated between extended households which implemented public good provision. – Reproduced
https://www.aeaweb.org/articles?id=10.1257/aer.20201919
| Item type | Current location | Call number | Vol info | Status | Date due | Barcode |
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Articles
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Indian Institute of Public Administration | 113(10), Oct, 2023: p.2507-2545 | Available | AR131127 |
We test between cooperative and extractive theories of the origins of government. We use river shifts in southern Iraq as a natural experiment, in a new archeological panel dataset. A shift away creates a local demand for a government to coordinate because private river irrigation needs to be replaced with public canals. It disincentivizes local extraction as land is no longer productive without irrigation. Consistent with a cooperative theory of government, a river shift away led to state formation, canal construction, and the payment of tribute. We argue that the first governments coordinated between extended households which implemented public good provision. – Reproduced
https://www.aeaweb.org/articles?id=10.1257/aer.20201919
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