Huáscar Fialho Pessali

The Rhetoric of Oliver Williamson's Transaction Cost Economics

Bounded rationality, opportunism, the primacy of markets and the action of economizing are building blocks of Oliver Williamsons Transaction Cost Economics (TCE). As in all intellectual exchanges, Williamson has used a range of argumentative devices to set up and negotiate his basic notions and assumptions with economists. Rhetorical analysis is applied here to study his argumentation in a certain institutional context within economics. Negotiations with the mainstream, with the competence view of the firm and within the New Institutional Economics, for instance, have had an impact on the construction of TCE and are given attention here. Difficult decisions have been made in order to forge ahead with TCE, including whether to uphold some notions (e.g. opportunism) at the cost of leaving others behind (e.g. economics of atmosphere). Rhetorical transactions like this have shaped TCE and its recognition in economics and related areas.

Metaphors of Transaction Cost Economics

Abstract Metaphors are part of our daily lives as they help us understand the world. Economics, as with other areas of knowledge, cannot go without metaphors. Transaction Cost Economics (TCE)—a prominent theoretical framework on economic organisation—is no different: it has been built on a set of metaphors. This article gathers and discusses three of the key metaphors of TCE—transaction costs as frictions, human beings as “contractual men,” and economic selection between mechanisms of governance. How they fit together and help the construction of TCE are the issues at hand.

Public Policy Design in Developing Societies

The transplantation of public policies is a powerful tool in the hands of economic development. Powerful as it may be, transplantation verbatim et litteratim is not inevitably successful, thus not always desirable. There are good economic reasons to consider the practice of grafting in public policy transplants, i.e., consideration for the specificities of existing local institutions and how they may interact with a set of more overarching policy requirements and guidelines. An architecture for public policy design that institutionalizes some sort of negotiation between policy makers and stakeholders may provide a midway that avoids some of the intrinsic risks of standard transplantation architectures.

A mesoeconomia do desenvolvimento econômico: o papel das instituições

Institutions affect economic development, and at the same time they are a way to measure it. Correlation and causality tangle up within a circular and cumulative process of changes, which draws the limits and possibilities for increased individual freedom. This essay brings together some key ideas that relate institutions to economic development and tries to link them in such a way as to offer the reader a refreshed view of classic themes. The complex and historically diverse relationship among firms, markets and the state is used as a short illustration of our attempt at providing an institutional reading on economic development.

Institutional entrepreneurship in building the Brazilian market of functional yogurts

Purpose – The aim of this paper is to present an analytical narrative of the construction of the Brazilian market of functional yogurt, highlighting the role of Danone as an institutional entrepreneur. Design/methodology/approach – After putting together a theoretical basis from business studies and institutional economics, the paper explores factual evidence of strategic moves by dairy firms in Brazil. Findings – Danone, despite being a second mover, has been able to effectively make use of new values and collective concerns regarding food functionality to create a favourable institutional set in which to operate. Other firms have not been able to challenge its position in the market, simply abiding by the concepts and values created by Danone. Practical implications – On the one hand, case studies based on traditional economic theories usually approach markets with supply and demand adjustment tools or taking technology as exogenous and the sole determinant of the existence of a market. On the other han...

Dar o peixe e ensinar a pescar: racionalidade limitada e políticas de combate à pobreza

This paper discusses the implications of the assumption that economic agents at the receiving end of poverty reduction policies have bounded rationality. It assumes that the beneficiary of the program knows best how to use his or her income to satisfy his or her needs. This, however, does not imply that an optimal solution is reached. Individuals, especially those on very low-incomes, can make better choices as more and better information becomes available, improving their decision-making capabilities in favor of higher income alternatives that can be brought about by their own work efforts. These insights are in turn applied to study the case of the Brazilian program Bolsa Familia, implying that the design and implementation of poverty reduction policies need re-thinking in terms of their long term social efficiency.

A teoria da perspectiva e as mudanças de preferência no mainstream: um prospecto Lakatoseano

For many decades over the 20th Century, the mainstream of economics adopted a normative and axiomatic theory of individual behavior in which maximizing procedures were carried out by rationally unbounded agents. This status has been challenged on many grounds and alternative views from fields like psychology have found a way into the core of economics research frontier. Prospect theory, developed by psychologists Daniel Kahneman and Amos Tversky since the 1970s, has provided a more empirical, inductive and descriptive theory of decision making. It has made significant inroads into mainstream microeconomics, shaking the habits of some of its practitioners. This paper first takes stock of its main developments and then uses a Lakatosian framework to draw out its negative and positive heuristics. In what follows, its heuristics are compared to those of traditional rational decision-making theories. The differences between them are highlighted, pointing to changes in the mainstream of the profession and to new opportunities for research.

A governança facilitada no Mercosul: transferência de políticas e integração nas áreas de educação, migração e saúde

This article researches the role of Mercosur’s institutions in the process of policy transfer among member states in three specific areas: education, health and migration. The main argument is that these institutions became public policy-making forums acting as policy transfer facilitators in the empirical cases studied. This article aims to contribute to the development of empirical studies on public policy transfer in regional integration processes. Regional trading blocs promote the articulation of ideas and experience exchange among public policy managers. The methodology applied to this study involves the analysis of Mercosur’s official documents and interviews. Despite its intergovernmental nature and its low institutionalization, Mercosur has played an important role in national policy-making in education, health and migration.

A promoção da cooperação nos consórcios intermunicipais de saúde do estado do Paraná

Os consorcios intermunicipais de saude (CIS) sao hoje instituicoes publicas disseminadas. A descentralizacao promovida na area de saude nos anos 1990 estimulou a aglutinacao de municipios, em especial os menores, para enfrentar uma dificuldade comum - a prestacao de servicos especializados. Sao vinculados a algum CIS 41% dos municipios do pais. Se considerarmos apenas os municipios com ate 20 mil habitantes, 76% deles tem tal vinculo. Os CIS tentam fortalecer a cooperacao entre os municipios e assim viabilizar parte de suas politicas publicas na area de saude. O objetivo desta pesquisa e verificar, atraves de um survey com seus diretores, como se lida com conflitos e se promove a cooperacao nos CIS paranaenses. Os resultados indicam que ha atratividade financeira para participacao nos CIS; valoriza-se o consenso entre os membros; ha grande tolerância ao comportamento desviante; e a retaliacao nao cooperativa e rara e menos intensa do que a acao inicial.

La promoción de la cooperación en los consorcios intermunicipales de salud en el estado de Paraná

Os consorcios intermunicipais de saude (CIS) sao hoje instituicoes publicas disseminadas. A descentralizacao promovida na area de saude nos anos 1990 estimulou a aglutinacao de municipios, em especial os menores, para enfrentar uma dificuldade comum - a prestacao de servicos especializados. Sao vinculados a algum CIS 41% dos municipios do pais. Se considerarmos apenas os municipios com ate 20 mil habitantes, 76% deles tem tal vinculo. Os CIS tentam fortalecer a cooperacao entre os municipios e assim viabilizar parte de suas politicas publicas na area de saude. O objetivo desta pesquisa e verificar, atraves de um survey com seus diretores, como se lida com conflitos e se promove a cooperacao nos CIS paranaenses. Os resultados indicam que ha atratividade financeira para participacao nos CIS; valoriza-se o consenso entre os membros; ha grande tolerância ao comportamento desviante; e a retaliacao nao cooperativa e rara e menos intensa do que a acao inicial.