Ronald H. Coase
'Ronald Coase has been one of the most influential economists of his generation. Although his work deals with foundation concepts of the discipline, his ideas have been subject to a variety of usage, often in conjunction with ideological baggage. In this
- PDF / 23,992,942 Bytes
- 210 Pages / 396.85 x 612.283 pts Page_size
- 101 Downloads / 178 Views
CONTEMPORARY ECONOMISTS General Editor: John Pheby, Professor of Political Economy, De Montfort University, Leicester, England
The Contemporary Economists series is designed to present the key ideas of the most important economists of this century. After an opening biographical chapter, the books in this series focus on the most interesting aspects of their subject's contribution to economics, thus providing original insights into their work. Students and academics alike will be fascinated by the wealth of these economists' contributions and will be able to look with fresh eyes on their discipline.
Ronald H. Coase Steven G. Medema
Assistant Professor Department of Economics University of Colorado at Denver
©Steven G. Medema 1994 Softcover reprint of the hardcover 1st edition 1994 978-0-333-55645-0 All rights reserved. No reproduction, copy or transmission of this publication may be made without written permission. No paragraph of this pubhcation may be reproduced, copied or transmitted save with written permission or in accordance with the provisions of the Copyright. Designs and Patents Act 1988, or under the terms of any licence permitting limited copying issued by the Copyright Licensing Agency, 90 Tottenham Court Road, London WIP9HE. Any person who does any unauthorised act m relation to this publication may be liable to criminal prosecution and civil claims for damages. F1rst published in Great Britain 1994 by THE MACMILLAN PRESS LTD Houndmills, Basingstoke, Hampshire RG21 2XS and London Companies and representatives throughout the world A catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library. ISBN 978-1-349-12486-2 (eBook) ISBN 978-1-349-12488-6 DOI 10.1007/978-1-349-12486-2 First published in the United States of America 1994 by Scholarly and Reference Division, ST. MARTIN'S PRESS, INC., 175 Fifth Avenue, New York, N.Y. 10010 ISBN 978-0-312-12039-9 Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data Medema, Steven G. Ronald H. Coase I Steven G. Medema. p. cm. Includes bibliographical references and index. ISBN 978-0-312-12039-9 I. Coase, R.H. (Ronald Harry) 2. Economists-Great Britain-Biography. 3. Economics-History-20t h century. I. Title. HBI03.C57M43 1994 330' .092--dc20 93-37501 [BJ CIP
10 04
9 03
8 02
5 4 6 7 0 I 00 99 98
3 97
2 96
To all of the teachers who have helped me to find my own way, and especially John Spykman David Schelhaas Leon Van Rees Stanley Wiersma John Dodge Warren J. Samuels
Contents Preface
ix
1
Markings on a Long Journey
1
1.1 1.2
1 6
2
3
4
The Nature of the Firm
13
2.1 2.2 2.3 2.4
13 15 21
Background The nature of the firm: discovery Influence Conclusion
38
Pricing, Accounting and Costs
41
3.1 3.2
41
Marginal cost pricing The theory and measurement of costs in economics and accounting
52
The Problem of Social Cost
63
4.1 4.2
63
4.3 4.4 4.5
5
A short biography Apn!cis ofCoase's career
Some background 'The Federal Communications Commission': the first salvo 'The Problem of Social Cost': a new paradigm The legacy of 'The Prob
