52 pages • 1 hour read
Governing the Commons: The Evolution of Institutions for Collective Action
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Chapter 2Chapter Summaries & Analyses
Chapter 2 Summary: “An Institutional Approach to the Study of Self-Organization and Self-Governance in CPR Situations”
Ostrom wants to know how a group of individuals “who are in an interdependent situation can organize and govern themselves to obtain continuing joint benefits when all face temptations to free ride” (29). She defines the terms that she uses in her study. A CPR is a natural or man-made resource system that is large enough to make it costly to exclude people from obtaining benefits from it. The “resource system” refers to the stock variables, while the “resource units” are what individuals use or take from the resource. As long as the average rate of withdrawal does not exceed the average rate of replenishment, the resource is sustainable. The process of withdrawing resource units is called “appropriation,” and those withdrawing them are called “appropriators.” Those who arrange for the provision of a CPR are called “providers,” and those who maintain the resource via repairs are called “producers.” CPRs differ from other collective goods in that one appropriator’s withdrawals can negatively affect others. In a pure public good, such as clean air, one’s breathing does not negatively impact the breathing of others. With CPRs, there is the potential problem of overuse.
Individuals make decisions in an uncertain environment. Ostrom claims that Unlock all 52 pages of this Study Guide Plus, gain access to 9,150+ more expert-written Study Guides. Including features:
