IFREE-Sponsored Lecture Series at ESI

Peter Boettke, Ph.D.
Feb. 4th, 2011

"Polycentrism and Gargantua: Which Model Best Provides Public Education?"

My connection with experimental economics is indirect. Broadly understood, my work is about comparative institutional analysis; how do alternative rules of the game and their enforcement impact the behavior of individuals playing the game?

The conceptual framework for this sort of work, at least by me, is influenced by the market process theory of Hayek, the constitutional level of analysis of Buchanan, and the economics of governance found in the Ostrom’s. Vernon Smith and his colleagues have made considerable contributions both to our theoretical understanding of each of these areas and to the experimental testing of these ideas. I lean more toward historical research and field work, but the knowledge we have gained in the lab setting is indispensable for progress in economic science. And it is a great opportunity for me to present my work in the ESI/IFREE seminar.

Bio:
Peter Boettke is a University Professor of economics at George Mason University, the BB&T Professor for the Study of Capitalism at the Mercatus Center at GMU, and the Deputy Director of the James M. Buchanan Center for Political Economy.

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