Research | AbhinayMuthoo

"The real problem of humanity is the following: We have Paleolithic emotions, medieval institutions and godlike technology." E O Wilson.

"Institutions are the rules of the game in a society, or more formally, the humanly devised constraints that shape human interaction." Douglass North.

This "Research" page is about my research and academic publications. My non-academic, non-technical articles are on my "Media & Press" page.

October 1985, Cambridge, UK (where it all started), at the Faculty of Economics & Politics, and King's College Cambridge (which was John Maynard Keynes, Alan Turning and E.M. Forster's college too - pics on the right of the college):

I began doing research in October 1985 when I started my doctoral thesis (PhD) at the University of Cambridge. I have been doing research since then.

I was awarded a PhD by the University of Cambridge in May 1988 on the subject of bargaining and negotiations. My PhD thesis can be accessed from the University of Cambridge Library website, here. Chapter 3 of my PhD thesis was awarded the 1987 University of Cambridge Stevenson prize.

My supervisors were Professor David Canning (now at Harvard) and Professor Sir Partha Dasgupta. In addition, Professor Eric Maskin (Harvard; 2007 Nobel Laureate) and Professor Ariel Rubinstein (Tel Aviv University and NYU) provided significant advise, input, and comments on draft chapters.

My internal examiner was the late Professor Frank Hahn, and my external examiner was Professor Ken Binmore (LSE).

My Top Ten Academic Publications (in chronological order):

1. "Bargaining in a Long-Term Relationship with Endogenous Termination'', Journal of Economic Theory, 1995, 590-598.

2. "A Bargaining Model Based on the Commitment Tactic'', Journal of Economic Theory, 1996, 134-152. [Cited by the 2005 Nobel Prize Committee in Economics.]

3. "Strategic Bargaining and Competitive Bidding in a Dynamic Market Equilibrium'', (jointly with Melvyn Coles), Review of Economic Studies, 1998, 235-260.

4. "Renegotiation-Proof Tenurial Contracts as Screening Mechanisms'', Journal of Development Economics, 1998, 1-26.

5. "Corruption, Extortion and Evasion'', (jointly with Jean Hindriks and Michael Keen), Journal of Public Economics, 1999, 395-430. [Reprinted as chapter 15 in Governance, Corruption and Economic Performance, Abed and Gupta (eds), International Monetary Fund, Washington, D.C., 2002.]}

6. Bargaining Theory with Applications, Cambridge, UK: Cambridge University Press, 1999. [Chinese translation published by Shanghai University of Finance and Economics Press, 2005.] [Some reviews of my book, published in three journals: Econ Journal; Economica; Public Choice.] [Amazon page.]

7. "A Model of the Origins of Basic Property Rights'', Games and Economic Behavior, 2004, 288-312.

8. "Information, Institutions and Constitutional Arrangements'', (jointly with Kenneth A. Shepsle), Public Choice, July 2010, 1-36. (Winner of the Duncan Black Prize for best paper published in Public Choice in 2010).

9 "Imperfect Competition and Efficiency in Lemons Markets'' (jointly with Suresh Mutuswami), Economic Journal, May 2011, 580-594.

10 "Control Rights in Complex Partnerships'' (jointly with Marco Francesconi), Journal of the European Economic Association, June 2011, 551-589.

Full List of My Academic Publications:

Book:

[1] Bargaining Theory with Applications, Cambridge, UK: Cambridge University Press, 1999. [Chinese translation published by Shanghai University of Finance and Economics Press, 2005.]

Research Report:

[1] Youth Violence Commission Final Report, jointly with Keir-Irwin Rogers and Luke Billingham, July 2020, London.

Articles:

[1] "Bargaining Without Commitment", Games and Economic Behavior, 1990, 291-297.

[2] "A Note on Bargaining Over a Finite Number of Feasible Agreements'', Economic Theory, 1991, 290-292.

[3] "Revocable Commitment and Sequential Bargaining'', The Economic Journal, 1992, 378-387.

[4] "Sequential Bargaining and Competition'', Economic Theory, 1993, 353-363.

[5] "A Note on Repeated-Offers Bargaining with One-Sided Incomplete Information'', Economic Theory, 1994, 295-301.

[6] "A Bargaining Model with Players' Perceptions on the Retractability of Offers'', Theory and Decision, 1995, 85-98.

[7] "On the Strategic Role of Outside Options in Bilateral Bargaining'', Operations Research, 1995, 292-297.

[8] "Bargaining in a Long-Term Relationship with Endogenous Termination'', Journal of Economic Theory, 1995, 590-598.

[9] "A Bargaining Model Based on the Commitment Tactic'', Journal of Economic Theory, 1996, 134-152. [Cited by the 2005 Nobel Prize Committee in Economics.]

[10] "Rationality, Learning and Social Norms'', The Economic Journal, 1996, 1357-1359.

[11] "Sunk Costs and the Inefficiency of Relationship-Specific Investment'', Economica, 1998, 97-106.

[12] "Strategic Bargaining and Competitive Bidding in a Dynamic Market Equilibrium'', (jointly with Melvyn Coles), Review of Economic Studies, 1998, 235-260.

[13] "Renegotiation-Proof Tenurial Contracts as Screening Mechanisms'', Journal of Development Economics, 1998, 1-26.

[14] "Corruption, Extortion and Evasion'', (jointly with Jean Hindriks and Michael Keen), Journal of Public Economics, 1999, 395-430. [Reprinted as chapter 15 in Governance, Corruption and Economic Performance, Abed and Gupta (eds), International Monetary Fund, Washington, D.C., 2002.]}

[15] "Rationality in the Face of Uncertainty'', in The Elgar Companion to Consumer Research and Economic Psychology, edited by Peter Earl and Simon Kemp, Cheltenham, England: Edward Elgar Publishing, 1999, 487-495.

[16] "A Non-Technical Introduction to Bargaining Theory'', World Economics, 2000, 145-166.

[17] "Equilibrium Partner Switching in a Bargaining Model with Asymmetric Information'', (with Gianni De Fraja), International Economic Review, 2000, 849-870.

[18] "On John Nash's Scientific Contributions'', in Game Theory: A Festschrift in honor of John Nash, edited by C. Kottaridi and G. Siourounis, Eurasia Publications, Athens, 2002, 134-137.

[19] "The Economics of Bargaining'', in Knowledge for Sustainable Development: An Insight into the Encyclopedia of Life Support Systems, UNESCO and EOLSS: EOLSS Publishers Co. Ltd, 2002.

[20] "Bargaining in a Non-Stationary Environment'', (jointly with Melvyn Coles), Journal of Economic Theory, 2003, 70-89.

[21] "A Model of the Origins of Basic Property Rights'', Games and Economic Behavior, 2004, 288-312.

[22] "Bargaining'', in The Social Science Encyclopedia, Third Edition, edited by Adam Kuper and Jessica Kuper, London: Routledge, 2004.

[23] "Bargaining Theory and Royalty Contract Negotiations'', Review of Economic Research on Copyright Issues, 2006, 19-28.

[24] "The Constitutional Choice of Bicameralism'', (jointly with Kenneth A. Shepsle), in Institutions and Economic Performance, edited by Elhanan Helpman, Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press, 2008, 249-291.

[25] "Information, Institutions and Constitutional Arrangements'', (jointly with Kenneth A. Shepsle), Public Choice, July 2010, 1-36. (Winner of the Duncan Black Prize for best paper published in Public Choice in 2010).

[26] "Imperfect Competition and Efficiency in Lemons Markets'' (jointly with Suresh Mutuswami), Economic Journal, May 2011, 580-594.

[27] "Control Rights in Complex Partnerships'' (jointly with Marco Francesconi), Journal of the European Economic Association, June 2011, 551-589.

[28] "Seniority and Incumbency in Legislatures'' (jointly with Ken Shepsle), Economics & Politics, March 2014, 13-37.

[29] "Bargaining and Holdup: The Role of Arbitration'' (jointly with Yannick Gabuthy), Oxford Economic Paper, 2019.

Book Reviews:

[1] Bargaining and Markets, by Martin Osborne and Ariel Rubinstein, Economica, 1991, 408-410.

[2] A Course in Game Theory, by Martin Osborne and Ariel Rubinstein, Economica, 1996, 164-165.

[3] Strategic Foundations of General Equilibrium: Dynamic Matching and Bargaining Games, by Douglas Gale, Economica, 2002, 681-683.