The countervailing effects of competition on public goods provision: When bargaining inefficiencies lead to bad outcomes

Political competition is widely recognized as a mediator of public goods provision through its salutary effect on incumbents’ electoral incentives. We argue that political competition additionally mediates public goods provision by reducing the efficiency of legislative bargaining. These countervail...

Descripción completa

Detalles Bibliográficos
Autores principales: Gottlieb, Jessica, Kosec, Katrina
Formato: Journal Article
Lenguaje:Inglés
Publicado: Cambridge University Press 2019
Materias:
Acceso en línea:https://hdl.handle.net/10568/145878
_version_ 1855513449907355648
author Gottlieb, Jessica
Kosec, Katrina
author_browse Gottlieb, Jessica
Kosec, Katrina
author_facet Gottlieb, Jessica
Kosec, Katrina
author_sort Gottlieb, Jessica
collection Repository of Agricultural Research Outputs (CGSpace)
description Political competition is widely recognized as a mediator of public goods provision through its salutary effect on incumbents’ electoral incentives. We argue that political competition additionally mediates public goods provision by reducing the efficiency of legislative bargaining. These countervailing forces may produce a net negative effect in places with weak parties and low transparency—typical of many young democracies. We provide evidence of a robust negative relationship between political competition and local public goods using panel data from Mali. Tests of mechanisms corroborate our interpretation of this relationship as evidence of legislative bargaining inefficiencies. To explore the generalizability of these findings, we analyze cross-country panel data and show that political competition leads to better (worse) public goods provision under high (low) levels of party system institutionalization. The paper sheds light on why political competition is only selectively beneficial, and underscores the importance of considering both the electoral and legislative arenas.
format Journal Article
id CGSpace145878
institution CGIAR Consortium
language Inglés
publishDate 2019
publishDateRange 2019
publishDateSort 2019
publisher Cambridge University Press
publisherStr Cambridge University Press
record_format dspace
spelling CGSpace1458782025-12-08T10:06:44Z The countervailing effects of competition on public goods provision: When bargaining inefficiencies lead to bad outcomes Gottlieb, Jessica Kosec, Katrina political systems political institutions bargaining power governance legislation Political competition is widely recognized as a mediator of public goods provision through its salutary effect on incumbents’ electoral incentives. We argue that political competition additionally mediates public goods provision by reducing the efficiency of legislative bargaining. These countervailing forces may produce a net negative effect in places with weak parties and low transparency—typical of many young democracies. We provide evidence of a robust negative relationship between political competition and local public goods using panel data from Mali. Tests of mechanisms corroborate our interpretation of this relationship as evidence of legislative bargaining inefficiencies. To explore the generalizability of these findings, we analyze cross-country panel data and show that political competition leads to better (worse) public goods provision under high (low) levels of party system institutionalization. The paper sheds light on why political competition is only selectively beneficial, and underscores the importance of considering both the electoral and legislative arenas. 2019-01-02 2024-06-21T09:05:15Z 2024-06-21T09:05:15Z Journal Article https://hdl.handle.net/10568/145878 en https://doi.org/10.1093/wber/lhz010 https://doi.org/10.1017/S0043887120000027 https://doi.org/10.2499/1037800849 Open Access Cambridge University Press Gottlieb, Jessica; and Kosec, Katrina. 2019. The countervailing effects of competition on public goods provision: When bargaining inefficiencies lead to bad outcomes. American Political Science Review 113(1): 88-107. https://doi.org/10.1017/S0003055418000667
spellingShingle political systems
political institutions
bargaining power
governance
legislation
Gottlieb, Jessica
Kosec, Katrina
The countervailing effects of competition on public goods provision: When bargaining inefficiencies lead to bad outcomes
title The countervailing effects of competition on public goods provision: When bargaining inefficiencies lead to bad outcomes
title_full The countervailing effects of competition on public goods provision: When bargaining inefficiencies lead to bad outcomes
title_fullStr The countervailing effects of competition on public goods provision: When bargaining inefficiencies lead to bad outcomes
title_full_unstemmed The countervailing effects of competition on public goods provision: When bargaining inefficiencies lead to bad outcomes
title_short The countervailing effects of competition on public goods provision: When bargaining inefficiencies lead to bad outcomes
title_sort countervailing effects of competition on public goods provision when bargaining inefficiencies lead to bad outcomes
topic political systems
political institutions
bargaining power
governance
legislation
url https://hdl.handle.net/10568/145878
work_keys_str_mv AT gottliebjessica thecountervailingeffectsofcompetitiononpublicgoodsprovisionwhenbargaininginefficienciesleadtobadoutcomes
AT koseckatrina thecountervailingeffectsofcompetitiononpublicgoodsprovisionwhenbargaininginefficienciesleadtobadoutcomes
AT gottliebjessica countervailingeffectsofcompetitiononpublicgoodsprovisionwhenbargaininginefficienciesleadtobadoutcomes
AT koseckatrina countervailingeffectsofcompetitiononpublicgoodsprovisionwhenbargaininginefficienciesleadtobadoutcomes