We study how the proximity of elections affects policy choices in a model in which policymakers want to improve their reputation to increase their reelection chances. Policymakers’ equilibrium decisions depend on both their reputation and the proximity of the next election. Typically, incentives to influence election results are stronger closer to the election (for a given reputation level), as...

Geographic Proximity, Trade and International Conflict/Cooperation This paper examines the interactive effect of distance and trade on international conflict and cooperation. The effect of geographic distance depends on trade, while the effect of trade varies with geographic distance. Trade reduces conflict to a greater extent when dyads are geographically close, but has a greater effect on coo...

Centralized sanctioning institutions are of utmost importance for overcoming free-riding tendencies and enforcing outcomes that maximize group welfare in social dilemma situations. However, little is known about how such institutions come into existence. In this paper we investigate, both theoretically and experimentally, the endogenous formation of institutions in a public goods game. Our theo...

We examine gender differences in trust in another party’s cooperation (CC) or its ability (AC). While men and women do not differ concerning trust in cooperation, gender has a strong influence when trust in another subject’s ability is required. JEL-classification: C72, C91

We examine a variant of repeated Prisoner’s Dilemma whose stage game payoffs are subject to vary, and show that a payoff perturbation may strictly reduce the minimum discount factor to sustain mutual cooperation. JEL classification: C 73

Institution Formation in Public Goods Games Centralized sanctioning institutions are of utmost importance for overcoming free-riding tendencies and enforcing outcomes that maximize group welfare in social dilemma situations. However, little is known about how such institutions come into existence. In this paper we investigate, both theoretically and experimentally, the endogenous formation of i...

This paper studies how political fragmentation affects government stability. Using a regression discontinuity design, we show that each additional party with representation in the local parliament increases probability incumbent is unseated by 5 percentage points. The entry of an stability reducing single-party majority and increasing instability governments when such not available. We interpre...

The Journal of Economic Literature codes classification system (JEL) published by the American Association (AEA) is de facto standard for research literature in economics. JEL used to classify articles, dissertations, books, book reviews, and working papers EconLit, a database maintained AEA. Over time, it has evolved extended with over 850 subclasses. This paper reviews history development sys...

We study reforms of nonlinear income tax systems from a political economy perspective. present median voter theorem for monotonic reforms, so that the change in burden is function income. also provide an empirical analysis with focus on United States. show past have, by and large, been monotonic. support was aligned majority population. Finally, we develop sufficient statistics enable to test w...

this paper analyses the impact of sanctions against iran in addition to other country-specific determinants on intra-industry trade between iran and shanghai cooperation organization (sco) countries over the period 1997-2013. by disentangling total intra-industry trade (iit) into horizontal and vertical iit and after investigating bilateral trade pattern between iran and sco countries, determin...