The Institute for the Study of Political Economy seeks to further our understanding of market, political, and social processes and institutions using the political economy traditions associated with F. A. Hayek, James Buchanan, and Elinor Ostrom.
F.A. Hayek (1899–1992), best known for his defense of classical liberalism, made fundamental contributions in political theory, psychology, and economics. Hayek believed that the prosperity of society was driven by creativity, entrepreneurship and innovation, which were possible only in a society with free markets. He is widely believed to be the greatest proponent of Austrian Economics and his writings continue to be utilized today.
In 1974 Hayek shared the Nobel Prize with Gunnar Myrdal “for their pioneering work in the theory of money and economic fluctuations and for their penetrating analysis of the interdependence of economic, social and institutional phenomena.” Hayek’s account of how changing prices communicate information helps individuals coordinate their plans is widely regarded as an important achievement in economics, leading to his Nobel Prize.
• Nobel Biography
• Library of Economics and Liberty Biography
James M. Buchanan (1919–2013) was an American economist known for his work on public choice theory. He received the Nobel Memorial Prize in Economic Sciences in 1986 for his "development of the contractual and constitutional bases for the theory of economic and political decision-making."
Public choice theory assumes that politicians and government officials are motivated by the same desire to improve their own well-being that we assume about people in the marketplace. This means they are often more concerned with getting re-elected or gaining more power than acting in the public interest. Buchanan's work focused on public finance, the public debt, voting, macroeconomics, constitutional economics, and libertarian theory.
• Nobel Biography
• Library of Economics and Liberty Biography
Elinor Ostrom (1933–2012) was an American political economist whose work was associated with the resurgence of political economy. In 2009, she was awarded the Nobel Memorial Prize in Economic Sciences for her "analysis of economic governance, especially the commons," which she shared with Oliver E. Williamson. To date, she remains the first of only two women to win the Nobel Prize in Economics (the other being Esther Duflo).
Ostrom’s work focused on how humans interact with ecosystems to maintain long-term sustainable resource yields -- examining the use of collective action, trust, and cooperation in the management of common pool resources such as forests, fisheries, oil fields, grazing lands, and irrigation systems.
• Nobel Biography
• Library of Economics and Liberty Biography