Go West Young Man: Self‐Selection and Endogenous Property Rights Journal Article uri icon

Overview

abstract

  • If, as Hume argues, property is a self‐referring custom of a group of people, then property rights depend on how that group forms and orders itself. In this article we investigate how people construct a convention for property in an experiment in which groups of self‐selected individuals can migrate between three geographically separate regions. To test a hypothesis of Demsetz's, we vary across two treatments the external benefits of migrating. We find that self‐selection has a powerful effect on establishing conventions of property and begetting increases in wealth through exchange and specialization. We also find support for the Demsetz hypothesis.

publication date

  • April 1, 2013

has restriction

  • green

Date in CU Experts

  • August 30, 2017 4:04 AM

Full Author List

  • Jaworski T; Wilson BJ

author count

  • 2

Other Profiles

International Standard Serial Number (ISSN)

  • 0038-4038

Electronic International Standard Serial Number (EISSN)

  • 2325-8012

Additional Document Info

start page

  • 886

end page

  • 904

volume

  • 79

issue

  • 4