Public Goods
نویسنده
چکیده
We require an economic system to cater to individual wants to the maximum possible extent expressed formally by means of an efficiency condition. Because the set of efficient outcomes is a function of individual preferences, a successful system must elicit information about those preferences. That desideratum, along with the fact that the information disclosed by an individual will be dictated by his or her self interest, puts severe constraints on an economic system also called a mechanism. We characterize the family of mechanisms that satisfy those constraints when public goods are involved. Because it is a narrow family, we can also identify its limitations.
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