How (Not) to Measure Institutions

Abstract

Abstract:The statement "institutions matter" has become commonplace. A precondition for it to be supported by empirical evidence, is, however, that institutions are measurable. Glaeser et al. (2004) attacks many studies claiming to prove the relevance of institutions for economic development as being based on flawed measures of institutions, or not even on institutions at all. This paper shows that their criticism deserves to be taken seriously, but that it is somewhat overblown.Some of the difficulties in measuring institutions are described and some ways of measuring them are proposed.

Varieties of legal systems: towards a new global taxonomy

“…It also needs to be acknowledged that such aggregated indicators have been subject to criticism (e.g., Voigt, 2013;Kurtz and Schrank, 2007). In the present case, it is suggested, however, that it is helpful to include the 'rule of law' indicator since it can fill gaps left by the choice of some of the narrower indicators chosen for the purpose of this paper.…”

One More Regulatory Impact Assessment of the Trade Law: Are There Cumulative Effects over Time?

“…Для адекватной оценки фактических последствий регуляторного воздействия и элиминирования случайных отклонений крайне важно произвести несколько замеров на протяжении достаточно длитель-ного периода [Voigt, 2013]. Полученные данные предоставляют такую возможность.…”

“…Оценка фактических последствий регулирующего воздействия должна включать действия субъекта(ов), осуществляющего(их) ин-форсмент принятых формальных правил [Voigt, 2013]. Ранее уже обращалось внимание на дополнительные административные из-держки, возникшие для компаний в связи с введением Закона о тор-говле [Радаев, 2014].…”

Measuring Institutional Change: The Case of the Russian Banking Industry

“…The more specific institution is measured and the more objective the measurement is, the better (Voigt, 2013). Many institutions are unobservable, and we judge about them via the structures that these institutions create.…”