An important new research program has developed in economics that extends neoclassical economic theory in order to examine the effects of institutions on economic behavior. The body of work emerging from this new line of inquiry includes contributions from the various branches of economic theory, such as the economics of property rights, the theory of the firm, cliometrics and law and economics. This book is the first comprehensive survey of this research program, which the author terms "neoinstitutional economics." The author proposes a unified approach to this research, integrating the work of various contributors and emphasizing the common principles of inquiry that tie the work together. The theoretical discussion is accomplished by empirical studies dealing with a whole range of institutions and economic systems.