Promotie Miguel Laborda Pemán – Beyond Markets and Hierarchies in Pre-Industrial Europe. The Evolution of Institutions for Collective Action in Historical Perspective

On May 11, 2017, our research team member Miguel Laborda Pemán will defend his Phd thesis at Utrecht University, entitled  ‘Beyond Markets and Hierarchies in Pre-Industrial Europe. The Evolution of Institutions for Collective Action in Historical Perspective’. In his dissertation, Miguel analyzes the process of establishment and long-term change of historical institutions for collective action.

Building on previous historiography as well as on recent advances in the social and experimental sciences, Miguel considers this development of intense cooperation at the local level as one of the most distinctive attributes of European exceptionality – what he calls the ‘Ostromian-Tocquevillian framework’. Contrasting with earlier approaches focusing on either secure individual property rights or inclusive state organizations, he argues that looking at the European special path from this framework necessarily draws the attention to a set of three interrelated questions: (i) Why did cooperation thrive during late medieval times? (ii) How did local communities preserve robustness in the long run? (iii) How did corporations interact with emerging state structures from early modern times onwards?

In his dissertation Miguel sketches a theoretical framework suggesting preliminary answers to the first two questions. Subsequently, he turns to quantitative and qualitative evidence on craft guilds and commons, arguably the most significant examples of formalized cooperation before 1800, in order to tests a number of hypotheses stemming from the framework. Promotors are prof. dr. Tine De Moor and prof. dr. Jan Luiten van Zanden.

The defense will take place at 12:45 pm (sharp) in the Senaatszaal of the Academiegebouw, Domplein 29, Utrecht, on Thursday May 11, 2017.  A reception in the Academiegebouw will follow immediately afterwards.

> More info will be available soon via https://www.uu.nl/en/organisation/news-and-events/events/phd