This paper presents data from experiments with a linear voluntary contributions mechanism for public goods conducted in Japan, the Netherlands, Spain and the USA. The same experimental design was used in the four countries. Our 'contribution function' design allows us to obtain a more complete...

We confront two common objections to Harsanyi's impartial observer theorem; one to do with 'fairness', and the other to do with different individuals' having different attitudes toward risk. Both these objections can be accommodated if we drop the reduction axiom; in particular, if we...

This paper studies the problem of information revelation in a multi-stage tournament where the agents’ effort in each stage gives rise to a stochastic performance signal privately observed by the principal. The principal controls the agents’ effort incentive through the use of a feedback...

This paper establishes monotonicity of the chi-square test statistic. As the more efficient parameter estimator is plugged into the test statistic, the degrees of freedom of the resulting chi-square test statistic monotonically increase. -- cell ; chi-square test ; Fisher information ;...

Recently, several papers have re-examined the so called production efficiency theorem and the Atkinson and Stiglitz theorem on commodity taxes in the optimal taxation literature. Naito (1998) showed that indirect redistribution through production distortion or consumption distortion can...

This paper analyzes optimal nonlinear income and inheritance taxation by incorporating two types of models that were developed independently in the public finance literature: an infinite horizon representative agent model such as Judd (1995), Chamley (1986) and Lucas (1992), and asymmetric...

This paper analyzes the role of production distortion for income redistribution in an international trade model. In particular, this paper examines the role of the Stolper and Samuelson effect (Stolper and Samuelson 1941) on efficient income redistribution. It first shows that production...

In the model there are two types of financial auditors with identical technology, one of which is endowed with a prior reputation for honesty. We characterize conditions under which there exists a “two-tier equilibrium” in which “reputable” auditors refuse bribes offered by clients for...

Recently, several papers have re-examined the so-called production efficiency theorem and the Atkinson and Stiglitz theorem on commodity taxes in the optimal taxation literature. Naito (1999) showed that indirect redistribution through production distortion or consumption distortion can...