INSTITUTIONAL ECONOMICS: EXAMINATION

• Please answer 2 questions, one from each section.
• Read the questions carefully. Before answering the question, spend a few minutes to make some brief notes.
• Only authorised dictionaries should be used during the examination.
• If you require more writing paper or have any queries, please raise your hand.
• Please allow sufficient time to complete two questions (one hour for each question).

• Students will not be allowed to leave the room 15 minutes before the end of the examination. If you have any spare time, check over your answers.

1. Evaluate in what ways institutional economics are improvements on neoclassical economics. OR, discuss the ways in which economics has become evolutionary.

2. Giving examples, explain the following terms:

• critical realism;
• evolutionary metaphor;
• knowledge and information;
• institutions;
• competition.

3. What are the differences between old and new institutional economics?

4. Discuss the different approaches to economic methodology.

5. Assess the significance of institutions in the economy. Discuss the different types of institutions, explaining their strengths and weaknesses.

6. Discuss the different models of social order, examining their logic, values, strengths, and limitations.

7. Describe the nature and types of property rights. Explain how new and old institutional economics conceptualise market exchange and contracts.

8. Examine the different approaches to the market process. Suggest their implications for understanding economic practices and institutions.

9. What are the key theoretical perspectives on the firm, discussing their strengths and weaknesses?

10. Discuss the key approaches to the state and collective action.