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FACW_ECON_1986_15314650_Cornes_Mason_Sandler.pdf (4.36 MB)

Commons and the Optimal Number of Firms, The

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posted on 2021-11-15, 21:29 authored by R. Cornes, Charles F. Mason, T. Sandler
The “problem of the commons” is a frequently cited example of market failure in which exploiters’ pursuit of profits does not lead to the attainment of a social or Pareto optimum. In particular, a free-access equilibrium induces an unrestricted number of exploiters or firms to equate the variable input’s average product, instead of its marginal product, to the input’s real rental rate; hence, the rents of the variable input are driven to zero [Haveman, 1973]. When the number of firms in a commons in unrestricted, the scarce factor (e.g., the fishery, the hunting ground) is not imputed a rent. A social optimum can be achieved if a single firm exploits a commons and sells it output in a perfectly competitive market [Weitzman, 1974].

History

ISO

eng

Language

English

Publisher

University of Wyoming. Libraries

Journal title

Quarterly Journal of Economics

Collection

Faculty Publications - Economics

Department

  • Library Sciences - LIBS

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    Economics

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    Exports