Informal Institutional Change Research Articles

Institutional context of agricultural cooperatives functioning: regional peculiarities

Relevance. The problem of the dynamic development of agricultural cooperation is again becoming a priority item on the agenda of agricultural producers, politicians and scientists, due to new complexities and challenges of a political, climatic, biological and other nature. One of its points is the assessment of the quality of the institutional environment for the functioning of agrarian cooperatives, in connection with which the purpose of the study presented in the article is the review and analysis of its content, moreover, taking into account the existing regional characteristics. Methods. To study and assess the state of formal and informal institutions that favor or restrict the activities of cooperatives, the work uses qualitative and quantitative survey and analytical methods (in particular, formal-logical, historical, cultural, comparative) and corresponding tools. At the same time, the empirical base was made up of statistical information from Rosstat and its regional body (Department of the Federal State Statistics Service for the Sverdlovsk region and the Kurgan region), as well as materials obtained as a result of sociological surveys, including in-depth interviews with agricultural producers (actual and potential participants in cooperation). Results. The main results of the study include theoretical and applied (rigorously verified) generalizations regarding: (1) the directions and degree of influence of the institutional environment on the success of agricultural cooperatives, (2) the possibilities of transforming the institutional environment in a positive direction for cooperation, (3) options for coordinated changes in formal and informal institutions for the formation of positive trends in the development of agricultural cooperation. The main conclusion is that, while informal institutions, being conservative and immobile, significantly impede the rapid and effective formation of agricultural cooperatives in the Russian Federation, it is the formal environment, which has great potential for timely adaptation, that is able to neutralize some of the serious obstacles to successful evolution of cooperative practices in agricultural sector.

Інституціональне забезпечення антикризового регулювання економічної безпеки країни

The article identifies problems and prospects of institutional provision for anti-crisis regulation of economic security of Ukraine. It is noted that the current level of economic security of Ukraine, complicated by the wartime, requires new approaches to institutional provision in terms of crisis management and regulation capable of solving the issue of reducing the level of corruption and shadowing the economy, which will significantly affect the implementation of our country’s intention to become a member of the European Union. It is noted that institutional provision for anti-crisis regulation of economic security of the country is considered as a complex and integrated system of socioeconomic development and provides for the implementation of appropriate measures (organizational, economic, technological, preventive, controlling, and protective), which are taken to neutralize the negative impact on the economic security of the State. It is determined that one of the main conditions for building an effective system of institutional provision for anti-crisis regulation of economic security of the country is the introduction of regular monitoring of the implementation of previously adopted decisions, formation of a dynamic information structure of institutional regulation of the national economy and elimination of existing administrative barriers and restrictions. It is concluded that one of the important conditions for the formation of an efficient system of institutional provision for anti-crisis regulation of economic security of Ukraine is the use of modern management technologies in combination with the development of the institutional environment, which covers a set of important institutions, formal and informal institutions and institutional changes aimed at improving the qualitative characteristics of formal and informal institutions that already exist in the field of anti-crisis regulation of economic security. A system of institutional provision for anti-crisis regulation of economic security of the country has been proposed, which provides for the complexity of solving problems at all levels of management, optimization of anti-crisis measures and equalization of conditions for economic management and human life, which, in turn, will allow solving the issue of creating conditions for development of both business and social sphere.

Innovation-digital direction of the development in the context of the regional asymmetry

The purpose of the article is to substantiate the directions of state regulation of the processes of information and digital development, which will contribute to the reduction of the processes of differentiation of the development of regional economic systems. The study used an institutional approach that allows with a high degree of subordination, logic and consistency to study the diverse phenomena and processes associated with innovation and digital development, to take into account not only changes in formal and informal institutions, but also changes in global economic processes. self-identification of regions. The tools of state regulation of innovation and digital development of the regions should be singled out. The role and importance of informal institutions of innovation and digital development of regions are outlined. Direct and indirect methods of supporting scientific, technical and innovative activities are identified. The necessity of formation of strategic directions of innovation and digital development of regions is proved.

‘Give It Up!’: A Macro-Social Marketing Approach to India's Clean Cooking Fuel Access

This paper examines how the Government of India (GOI) used macrosocial marketing (MSM) to address the issues of clean cooking fuel accessibility and affordability and structural inequalities in subsidy redistribution. It highlights a novel MSM application to address chrematistics in marketing systems. Two initiatives established by the GOI are examined. “Give It Up” encourages wealthier households to surrender liquid petroleum gas (LPG) subsidies, leaving these to poorer families, and Pradhan Mantri Ujjwala Yojana (PMUY) installs LPG connections for poor, rural women. The research explores how the GOI has addressed economic inefficiencies and structural inequalities, focusing on institutional norms and affordability, accessibility, awareness, and acceptability (the “4As”). The research expands the theoretical boundaries of MSM in relation to poverty and identifies its capacity to affect individual and systemic change through formal and informal institutional changes. Although new institutional norms were adopted, PMUY could not address the ongoing affordability of LPG, despite the changes to LPG subsidies.

Land reform from below: Institutional change driven by confrontation and negotiation

ABSTRACT China’s collective landownership was created by the revolutionary land reform in the early 1950s. Economic reforms since the early 1980s have dismantled the collective farming, but the collective landownership remains unchanged. Nonagricultural economies have manifested collective land rent in the dynamic urbanizing regions. The rural collective vigorously challenges the notion of collective land as a means of production that denies villagers’ claim of land rent. The contest for land rent through confrontation and negotiation with the urban state demonstrates a process of bottom-up informal institutional change. Without certainty, informal institutional change gives rise to substandard built environment that is unsustainable to the high-density urbanization. Formalization to legitimize the informal institutional change comes to minimize land rent dissipation so as to enhance welfare to both the urban state and rural collective. Land reform from below show an evolutionary route of institutional change to the collective land.

The institutional architecture of the European Union: emerging and unresolved questions

ABSTRACT This review article discusses three books that analyse in depth recent trends in the institutional architecture of the European Union. The three books focus, respectively, on the relations between legislatives and executive at the supranational level and within the member states, the self-empowerment strategies of the European Parliament, and the leadership performance of the President of the European Commission. Against this background, the review article makes some points on the state of the art of the institutional system of the EU twelve years after the entry into force of the Lisbon Treaty. The multiple crises that have affected the EU over the last decade have somewhat affected the functioning of its institutions. Meanwhile, any analysis of the European institutional system should fully consider the composite nature of the European constitution and the peculiar interplay of formal and informal institutional change that has marked its evolution.

Informal institutions and adaptation: patterns and pathways of influence in a remote Arctic community

ABSTRACT Institutions are influential in mediating the impact of adaptation initiatives at the local level, yet there are disconnects between the goals of multi-scale planning initiatives and community priorities. Research to address this challenge primarily focuses on reform to formal institutions in environmental governance. Meanwhile, knowledge of the specific role informal institutions play in governance processes remains limited. This study increases understanding of the interactions between informal institutions and adaptation using a case study of the Native Village of Wainwright on Alaska’s North Slope. Qualitative contextual analysis was employed to identify patterns of informal institution and adaptation associations in historic and contemporary situations in Wainwright. The Adaptation Institutional Analysis Framework developed in this paper extends Elinor Ostrom’s Institutional Analysis and Development Framework and is used as a tool to analyse and describe these dynamics. Four primary findings resulted from this analysis (1) identification of informal institutions that have a bearing on adaptation to environmental change and adaptive capacity in Wainwright, (2) insight into how the identified institutions relate to each other and to different aspects of local adaptation, (3) identification of changes in informal institutions that have occurred over time and the potential implications of these changes for local adaptive capacity, and (4) potential opportunities to leverage knowledge of informal institution and adaptation relationships in targeted formal initiatives. The outcomes of this study contribute to an improved understanding of the function and potential of informal institutions in adaptation processes, the benefits of which extend beyond the local context of Wainwright.

The Institutional Dimension of Integration in Marine Spatial Planning: The Case of the Dutch North Sea Dialogues and Agreement

Marine Spatial Planning (MSP) literature identifies various dimensions of integration to deal with fragmented, sectoral, and ad hoc approaches to managing various uses offshore. However, the spatial dimension of MSP has receded into the background, the dimensions of integration remain ill-defined, and there is a lack of appreciation for the institutional changes that these integration efforts induce and require. Moreover, in light of the urgency of energy transition, offshore wind farms (OWF) are often prioritized over other interests in MSP practice. This paper uses the case of the Dutch North Sea Dialogues (NSD) to explore to what extent actors during the NSD pursued formal and informal institutional change to progress the various dimensions of integration in line with the normative principles of MSP to improve spatial integration between OWF and other interests at sea. The NSD provided an, initially temporary, platform that proved key for stakeholders to pursue subsequent formal and informal institutional changes that progressed integration in MSP. While formal institutional changes were achieved during the NSD, informal institutional changes also proved fundamental in progressing various dimensions of integration. The NSD shows that incremental institutional change can be effective in progressing integration, but also shows the limits to this approach. The place-based and temporal dimensions of integration require additional attention because this is where stakeholders most notably rely on existing institutional frameworks and conflicts are most prominent.

A leverage points perspective on institutions for food security in a smallholder-dominated landscape in southwestern Ethiopia

Despite concerted efforts, achieving the goal of universal food security remains challenging. Food security interventions occur at different levels of systemic depth. Some interventions target visible supply-side gaps, while others focus on deeper systemic problems in the food system. Here, we used a leverage points perspective to ask how multiple types of more superficial (shallow) and more fundamental (deep) interventions in the food system interact. Focusing on a case study in southwestern Ethiopia, we examined (1) recent changes in formal and informal institutions related to food security; (2) the effects of formal and informal institutions on the food system at different levels of systemic depth (i.e., on parameters, feedbacks, design, and intent); and (3) issues of institutional interplay between formal and informal institutions. We surveyed 150 rural households and analyzed key policy documents. Both formal and informal institutions were perceived to improve food security. However, at the intent level, formal institutions primarily aimed to enhance food supply, while informal institutions additionally sought to build trust among farmers. At the design level, formal interventions targeted information flow through a newly created agricultural extension system, while informal institutions facilitated labor sharing and communication. In terms of institutional interplay, new formal institutions had partly undermined pre-existing informal institutions. We conclude that both visible supply-side gaps and deeper drivers of food insecurity should be targeted through food security interventions. Interventions need to be cognizant of potentially unexpected ways of institutional interplay, especially between formal and informal institutions.

Formal and Informal Institutions’ Changes in the Sharing Economy Development

Purpose: The purpose of this paper is to identify changes in formal and informal institutions that influence the sharing economy development. Design/methodology/approach: An approach to the analysis of sharing economy based on institutional economics has been proposed. It considers both formal and informal institutions vital for the sharing economy’s development. However, it focuses on the latter as the nature, role and design of informal institutions remain undiscovered while for sharing economy they seem crucial. Findings: Based on the findings it can be argued that informal institutions are of great importance for the sharing economy development. Despite the often-stressed role of regulations, it becomes clear that in this case, informal institutions may evolve more quickly and fill the gaps left by formal norms. It is of great importance than to support trust growth between the users and strengthen the evolution of property’s perception – from owning to sharing. Practical implications: The results may be useful for the sharing platforms as they stress the importance of their regulations and role in building trust between the users and providers of goods or services. They may contribute to a better design of the platforms and further development. The findings are important also for the users as they need an encouraging environment to operate effectively. Originality/value: The research is original because of the adopted perspective – rarely is the institutional economics base for sharing economy analysis, still, it offers important insights. The analysis indicates important changes in institutions connected with sharing economy and points which of them are crucial for its further development. Moreover, it stresses the role of informal institutions which despite growing importance are often excluded from the analysis.

Economic Development, Informal Land-Use Practices and Institutional Change in Dongguan, China

This paper is engaged with the critical perspective that highlights the role of the state in the production of urban informality by examining the dynamics of informal land-use practices in Dongguan, China since 1978. Based on in-depth interviews and archival analysis, the relationship between informal land development, the state, and land institution change has been revealed. Our findings show that informal land development is practiced by village collectives from below in Dongguan as a response to the absence and limitation of the national land law. The local government handles the informality in a pragmatic way that serves the goal of economic development in different historical conditions by actions of encouraging, tolerating, and authorizing, suggesting that the definition of informality is not a neutral classification. It is argued that while informality represents people’s creativity in dealing with practical problems, when and to what extent it can be tolerated, formalized, and absorbed depends on the intention of the state in a specific historical context.

Integrating Sustainable Stormwater Management in Urban Planning: Ways Forward towards Institutional Change and Collaborative Action

Climate change impacts, ageing infrastructure and the increasing imperviousness of cities all raise enormous challenges to and call for new ways of planning for sustainable urban stormwater management. Especially, closer collaboration among a diverse set of actors involved has been pointed to as critical to enable the development of holistic and flexible approaches. However, the shift towards inclusive forms of planning has been slow, and characterized by technical and institutional lock-ins. Against this background, this study scrutinizes the challenges and developments perceived as central for improving stormwater planning, and analyzes how formal and informal institutional change could contribute to enhancing sustainability in this sector. Building on an analysis of data from workshops, interviews and a survey with Swedish planners and water managers, we suggest new strategies for integrating stormwater concerns into planning processes, overcoming silo structures, fostering cocreation cultures, and securing the continuation and implementation of stormwater management through various planning stages.

Informal institutions and firm valuation

Research on the effects of the institutional environment on firm market valuation have concentrated on formal institutions and in particular legal frameworks. However, changes in formal institutions may have little to no effect on the deeply ingrained socio-economic processes which determine the way of conducting business in a country. In such a situation, informal institutions may play a much more important role for firms. Using property rights as an example, this paper models the impact of formal and informal institutional changes on the market growth potential of Polish firms. Our examination indicates that Poland's formal and informal institutions diverge significantly, with changes in informal institutions shaping market worth much more than binding formal frameworks. We conclude that firm valuation in an unstable institutional environment is due mostly to developments in informal property rights and other factors external to the firm, with comparatively little effect of firm-specific attributes.

Driving informal institutional change: the European Parliament and the reform of the Economic and Monetary Union

ABSTRACTWith the Lisbon Treaty, the European Parliament (EP) obtained co-decision rights in economic governance for the first time. Soon afterwards, the outbreak of the eurozone crisis required a reform of the Economic and Monetary Union (EMU). When negotiating EMU reform, the EP sought to push its rights beyond the Lisbon provisions, so as to obtain an informal institutional change to its benefit. How and under which conditions did the EP extend its informal powers successfully – and when did it fail? By focusing on two crucial strategies – delaying and arena-linking – we compare instances of EMU reform where the EP succeeded in reaching an informal empowerment to cases where it failed. We find that the urgency of decision-making and its distributional consequences influence the EP’s chances of success. While urgency plays a crucial role in times of crisis, distributional consequences come to bear in policies where core state powers are at stake.

Constraints, multiple stressors, and stratified adaptation: Pastoralist livelihood vulnerability in a semi-arid wildlife conservation context in Central Kenya

The focus of this study is on how changes in formal and informal institutions have differential impacts across populations in terms of vulnerability of livelihoods to drought, and the unequal processes that shape adaptation to new conditions. Drought vulnerability occurs as a result of exposure and sensitivity to interrelated economic, social, political, and ecological dynamics. There is a need for approaches that can evaluate how the ability to reduce these exposures and sensitivities becomes socially stratified. Building on our understanding of institutional and biophysical constraints in one pastoralist group ranch, we use an approach that draws on quantitative and qualitative data to combine analyses of entitlements, access, and adaptive capacity. We asked how, in a context of changing herding institutions, the ability to adapt to drought and other stressors, is differentiated among actors. We found that herders with higher livestock wealth are more likely to have entitlement sets that include factors that enable access to secure cattle grazing on private wildlife conservation lands, and access to more distant areas with herds of sheep and cattle – two key means of reducing exposure to drought vulnerability, leading to greater coping ability during drought. Those with lower livestock wealth rely disproportionately on illicit, precarious access to external grazing resources. Higher livestock wealth families experienced disproportionately lower sensitivity to drought with smaller losses of cattle, and likely have decreased sensitivity to drought-related market fluctuations, while others are primarily reliant on small stock and/or precarious access pathways. However, rather than naturalize this differential ability as merely increased adaptive capacity for some that are better able to adapt to novel, local conditions, we argue this instead reflects the unequal footing that households find themselves on, in a shifting institutional landscape of structural and relational access constraints and reconfigurations of reciprocity, that are intertwined with interventions by state and non-state actors.

Revolution without regime change: The evidence from the post-Euromaidan Ukraine

What effects does a revolution have on the stability or change of a hybrid regime? Has the Ukraine's regime changed since the 2014 revolution? To answer these questions I examine the changes in formal and informal institutions and the quantitative and qualitative composition of elites after the change of power in Ukraine in 2014. I argue that despite greater than in the post-orange period quantitative renewal of elites, qualitative change has not occurred. Meanwhile, the old operational code, or modus operandi, of elites' political culture, composed of clientelism, secretive deals and quota based nominations to government positions continues to operate. The lack of elites' renewal and the dominance of informal rules over formal procedures – two factors that keep the institutional core of Ukraine's hybrid regime unchanged.

Informal institutional change and the place of traditional justice in Sierra Leone’s post-war reconstruction

Engaging traditional authorities in post-conflict development of the rule of law is expected to preserve progressive elements of traditional dispute resolution while reforming the despotic practices of such authorities. However, beyond this widely-held expectation, the peacebuilding literature has so far failed to specify which traditional functions are susceptible to change and the mechanisms for informal institutional change. Based on qualitative fieldwork on traditional justice in Sierra Leone, this article argues that judicial roles which have emerged in response to weaknesses in the modern state system can be destabilized by post-conflict institutional reforms aimed at (re)building the rule of law. This is because the problem-solving needs which precipitated those informal judicial functions can be altered by an effective state system and the cost most likely to inhibit institutional change in this reconstruction context is particularistic to traditional authorities. However, preference for traditional methods and practices outside this endogenous relationship raises a fundamental question about socially-relevant justice which cannot be addressed by a functional state system and whose disruption incurs widely dispersed sociocultural costs.

Informal institutional change in De Achterhoek region: from citizen initiatives to participatory governance

ABSTRACTAs in other European countries, the formal planning task of Dutch governments is subjected to devolution and austerity measures. Not only did these developments lead to outsourcing planning tasks to lower-level governments, also citizens are increasingly ‘invited’ to take responsibility for providing public facilities and services. In De Achterhoek, a Dutch region, these shifts are amplified due to population change and traditional active citizenship, and led to institutional change. Since a decade local governments stimulate citizen initiatives, under the umbrella of participatory governance. This process of institutional change did not alter formal institutions, but was the result of an informal and dialectic process between local governments and citizen organizations. In this paper, we will demonstrate the process of change and how it affected planning practices in De Achterhoek, building on theories of informal institutional change and its driving forces. The empirical part of this paper draws on the results of three focus group meetings, in which a diverse set of local stakeholders discussed the effects of change they observed and how it shaped planning practices. In the final section, we reflect on the degree of institutionalization, by examining the robustness and resilience of the observed change.

There's Nothing Natural About the State of Government Spending in Arkansas

Arkansas is one of the poorest states in the United States, but it has a relatively high level of state government spending compared to similar states. This study examines the drivers of state spending and of spending increases in Arkansas. We investigate both the largest spending categories in absolute terms and categories that have grown significantly in recent decades. We also investigate formal and informal institutional changes that affect state and local government spending. Arkansas has seen significant growth in spending in recent decades. Between 1991 and 2013, state spending has almost doubled, increasing by almost 97 percent even after adjusting for inflation and population. The growth since 1951 has been ever more dramatic, increasing ninefold in real, per capita terms. We investigate what state- and local-level changes have brought about this growth and what institutional changes may have driven the growth, and we suggest institutional reforms.

Role of community based local institution for climate change adaptation in the Teesta riverine area of Bangladesh

Climate change adaptation is one of the most crucial issues in developing countries like Bangladesh. The main objective was to understand the linkage of participation with Community Based Adaptation (CBA) to climate change. Institutional framework following different types of conceptual theories (collective action, group, game and social learning theory) was utilized to analyze the participatory process in local community level Village Disaster Mangement Committee (VDMC) that works in collaboration with local government. Field level data was collected through interview and group discussion during 25 April to 30 May 2015 in the Teesta riverine area of northern Bangladesh. Results showed that flood and drought were the major climate change impacts in the study area, and various participatory tools were used for risk assessment and undertaking action plans to overcome the climate change challenges by the group VDMC. Participation in VDMC generated both relational and technical outcomes. The relational outcomes are the informal institutional changes through which local community adopt technological adaptation measures. Although, limitations like bargaining problem, free riding or conflict were found in collective decision making, but the initiation of local governance like VDMC has brought various institutional change in the communities in terms of adaptation practices. More than 80% VDMC and around 40–55% non-VDMC household respondents agreed that overall community based adaptation process was successful in the previous year. They believed that some innovative practices had been brought in the community through VDMC action for climate change adaptation. No doubt that the CBA has achieved good progress to achieve the government Comprehensive Disaster Management (CDM) strategy of climate change adaptation. But, there is still lack of coordination among local government, NGOs and civil partners in working together. Research related to socio-economic impact analysis for the sustainability of adaptation measures implemented through local community could be undertaken in future.