Making a Market The Institutional Transformation of an African Society [Paperback]

This 1993 book analyses the process by which the market was introduced into the economy of a group of Kenyan pastoralists.Tracing the effects of increasing commercialization on the economy of a group of Kenyan pastoralists, this study analyzes the process by which institutions are transformed as a market economy develops. It indicates the importance of understanding the roles of ideology and bargaining power.Tracing the effects of increasing commercialization on the economy of a group of Kenyan pastoralists, this study analyzes the process by which institutions are transformed as a market economy develops. It indicates the importance of understanding the roles of ideology and bargaining power.In Making a Market, Jean Ensminger analyzes the process by which the market was introduced into the economy of a group of Kenyan pastoralists. Professor Ensminger employs new institutional economic analysis to assess the impact of new market institutions on production and distribution, with particular emphasis on the effect of institutions on decreasing transaction costs over time. This study traces the effects of increasing commercialization on the economic well-being of individual households, rich and poor alike, over considerable time and analyzes the process by which institutions themselves are transformed as a market economy develops. This case study points out the importance of understanding the roles of ideology and bargaining power--in addition to pure economic forces, such as changing relative prices--in shaping market institutions.1. A proper marriage: new institutional economic anthropology; 2. Transaction costs: the history of trade among the Orma; 3. Distribution of the gains from trade; 4. Agency theory: patron-client relations as a form of labor contracting; 5. Property rights: dismantling the commons; 6. Collective action: from community to state; 7. Conclusion: ideology and the economy. Jean Ensminger's account of economic transformations among the pastorall³-