The allocation of entrepreneurial talent and destructive entrepreneurship

Arbeitspapier

Entrepreneurship is generally regarded as a force of change, innovation, and development in modern economies. Entrepreneurs bring new and better products to markets, restore allocative efficiency through arbitrage and reinvest their profits. However, it has been argued that the same energy and talent can also be allocated to unproductive ends and reduce total welfare. In this paper we present a model that analyzes the allocation of a given entrepreneurial talent over destructive and productive activities. We show that in this model two stable equilibria can emerge. As Baumol (1990) hypothesized, institutions determine the payoffs to both types of entrepreneurial activity and hence drive this allocation. But we also show that the distribution of initial wealth and entrepreneurial talent play a decisive role. This analysis provides a different perspective on the importance of high quality institutions in developing countries and sheds light on the situation in conflict and post-conflict countries, where both informal and formal institutions arguably have broken down. Under such circumstances, our analysis shows that microcredits can support the transition to a productive equilibrium, because they help to overcome credit constraints without creating incentives for destructive entrepreneurship.

Object Details

• ISBN: 978-92-9230-283-2
• Language: Englisch

References and Relationships

• Bibliographic citation: Series: WIDER Working Paper ; No. 2010/46

Classification and Topics

• Classification: Wirtschaft ; Organizational Behavior; Transaction Costs; Property Rights ; Human Capital; Skills; Occupational Choice; Labor Productivity ; Microeconomic Analyses of Economic Development ; Formal and Informal Sectors; Shadow Economy; Institutional Arrangements
• Subject: destructive entrepreneurship ; allocation of talent ; development ; institutions

Contributors, Places and Time

• Event: Geistige Schöpfung
• (who): Sanders, Mark ; Weitzel, Utz
• Event: Veröffentlichung
• (who): The United Nations University World Institute for Development Economics Research (UNU-WIDER)
• (where): Helsinki
• (when): 2010

Further information

• Handle: http://hdl.handle.net/10419/54064
• Last update: 10.03.2025, 11:43 AM CET