The vast majority of my work implicitly or explicitly invokes institutional theory. My primary background is in rational choice theory - where I've done a lot of work with Jack Knight's bargaining theory of institutional change. However, I've also done research involving sociological theory and constructivism in international relations, and historical institutionalism in political science. I'm interested in the intersection of the three - that is, how ideational factors intersect with bargaining power in the explanation of institutional change over time.
 | Colin Crouch and Henry Farrell, “Breaking the Path of Institutional Development: Alternatives to the New Determinism in Political Economy,” Rationality and Society, 16, 1:5-43 (2004). Earlier version available as a Max-Planck Discussion Paper, Max-Planck Institute for the Study of Society, Cologne, Germany. Available here. |
| Henry Farrell and Jack Knight, “Trust, Institutions and Institutional Evolution: Industrial Districts and the Social Capital Hypothesis,” Politics and Society, 31,4: 537-556 (2003). Available here. |