Understanding Institutional Diversity (Paperback)

by Elinor Ostrom (Author) "To UNDERSTAND institutions one needs to know what they are, how and why they are crafted and sustained, and what consequences they generate in diverse..." (more)
Key Phrases: commons dilemma experiments, resource governance systems, delta parameters, Snatch Game, Prisoner's Dilemma, United States (more...)

Editorial Reviews

Review
Understanding Institutional Diversity is a comprehensive book on the management of the common pool. It includes overviews of major theoretical issues and empirical studies. Anyone who is interested in how common-pool problems are or are not successfully resolved by locally devised arrangement should read it.
(Gary D. Libecap The Independent Review )

Review
This will undoubtedly be a very popular, much-assigned, and much-cited magnum opus.
(Carl Simon, University of Michigan )

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Product Details

• Paperback: 376 pages
• Publisher: Princeton University Press (August 22, 2005)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0691122385
• ISBN-13: 978-0691122380
• Product Dimensions: 9.1 x 6.1 x 1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.2 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars See all reviews (2 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #368,739 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

7 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A comprehensive look at the management of common-pool resources, October 18, 2006

By	Excerpt from "The Independent Review" (Oakland, CA) - See all my reviews

The book is divided into three parts: in part 1, the author describes analytical concepts useful in examining institutions; in part 2, she focuses on the hierarchy of rules that govern human behavior; and in part 3, she summarizes some key case studies of how institutions have been developed to mitigate the losses of the commons. There are extensive footnotes, and the bibliography includes some of the major work in institutional analysis and common-pool problems....

Ostrom summarizes the rules found in self-organized common-pool resource regimes and lists the range of institutional innovations that exist in local inshore fisheries, community forests, group livestock herds, and irrigation systems. These institutions have constrained free riding and limited individual access and use. Group members are given access, whereas nongroup members are denied, and this arrangement in itself tends to reduce competitive pressures, but more action is necessary. Within the group, some type of property or use right must exist. Ostrom summarizes the internal allocation rules that have been adopted for the assignment of those rights in several empirical cases she and others have studied. She concludes by observing that many key common-pool resource problems can be solved successfully and flexibly by local collective action that does not require intervention by outside third parties. She recognizes that these options, however, are less successful when the group is large and heterogeneous. Finally, she summarizes long-enduring institutions' design principles for governing sustainable resources. These principles include clearly defined boundaries, proportional equivalence between benefits and costs, effective monitoring, sanctions, and conflict resolution mechanisms. Each is illustrated with examples from case studies.

All in all, UNDERSTANDING INSTITUTIONAL DIVERSITY is a comprehensive book on the management of the common pool. It includes overviews of major theoretical issues and empirical studies. Anyone who is interested in how common-pool problems are or are not successfully resolved by locally devised arrangements should read it.

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Excellent Book, April 22, 2008

By	Ian S. Moss (Victoria, BC, Canada) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

I had been searching for a book on rules, their relationships to the structure of organizations, and to the outcomes produced by such organizations. The focus of this search was on commons based resources. I found what I was looking for when I found this book - it was immensely rewarding to read. At its heart is an outline of a discipline devoted to identifying what works and what doesn't work in terms of structuring organizations and the rules under which they operate. The first part of the book focusses on the use of game theory in this context. The second part of the book focusses more on the discipline of how to go about diagnosing instutional rule bases and exploring their consequences. The last part of the book provides some insight into what has been learned as a result of applying these tools - something that is well worth reading on its own. This book is essential reading for those who are concerned about human - environmental systems and interactions. Overall - a superb book.