The Firm as a Nexus of Treaties

The distinguished contributors to this book outline a new approach to the theory of the firm in which the object is to assess the comparative efficacy of alternative economic and organizational instruments such as: make or buy; debt or equity; piece-rates or time-rates; reciprocal trade or not.

The past decade has witnessed a renewal of interest in the study of economic organization, particularly in the modern corporation as the central economic institution. A controversial new term - nexus of contracts' - is sometimes used to describe the modern business firm, and economists interested in corporate finance and governance have found the term especially useful.

In broadening the term to nexus of treaties', it is applied to all relevant microanalytic work on the theory of the firm and goes beyond this by opening up a dialogue in which economics, sociology and political science can contribute to a new interdisciplinary science of organization. This interdisciplinarity is reflected in this book.

This book is organized into four parts. The first is concerned with knowledge - its acquisition, sharing and/or asymmetry. The second deals with vertical integration and the strategic management of the enterprise. The third addresses issues of labour organization, and the final part is concerned with political structure and finance.