Abstract
This article reviews Bob Tollison’s conjoint contributions to the burgeoning area of the economics of religion, underscoring his integration of public choice and interest-group themes into the microeconomic analysis of faith-based organizational architecture, institutional decision making and doctrinal innovation. Beginning with study of the medieval Catholic Church, moving forward to the Protestant Reformation and beyond, it supplies a timeline of developments and the major findings of each phase of his research program.
This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.
Similar content being viewed by others
References
Anderson, G., Ekelund, R. B. Jr., Hébert, R. F., & Tollison, R. D. (1992). The medieval crusades: a public choice perspective. European Journal of Economic History, 21, 349–363.
Anderson, G., & Tollison, R. D. (1992). Morality and monopoly: the constitutional political economy of religious rules. Cato Journal, 12, 373–392.
Ault, R. W., Ekelund, R. B. Jr., & Tollison, R. D. (1987). The pope and the price of meat: a public choice perspective. Kyklos, 3, 399–413.
Azzi, C., & Ehrenberg, R. G. (1975). Household allocation of time and church attendance. Journal of Political Economy, 83, 27–56.
Bairoch, P., Bateau, J., & Chèvre, P. (1988). La population des villes européens, 800–1850. Geneva: Librairie Droz.
Bercea, B., Ekelund, R. B. Jr., & Tollison, R. D. (2005). Cathedral building as an entry deterring device. Kyklos, 58, 453–466.
Ekelund, R. B. Jr., Hébert, R. F., & Tollison, R. D. (1989). An economic model of the medieval church: usury as a form of rent seeking. Journal of Law, Economics, and Organization, 5, 307–331.
Ekelund, R. B. Jr., Hébert, R. F., & Tollison, R. D. (1992). The economics of sin and redemption: purgatory as a market-pull innovation. Journal of Economic Behavior and Organization, 19, 1–15.
Ekelund, R. B. Jr., Hébert, R. F., Tollison, R. D., Anderson, G., & Davidson, A. (1996). Sacred trust: the medieval church as an economic firm. London: Oxford University Press.
Ekelund, R. B. Jr., Hébert, R. F., & Tollison, R. D. (2002). An economic analysis of the protestant reformation. Journal of Political Economy, 110, 646–671.
Ekelund, R. B. Jr., Hébert, R. F., & Tollison, R. D. (2004). The economics of the counter-reformation: incumbent firm reaction to market entry. Economic Inquiry, 42, 690–705.
Ekelund, R. B. Jr., Hébert, R. F., & Tollison, R. D. (2005). Adam Smith on religion and market structure. History of Political Economy, 37, 647–660.
Ekelund, R. B. Jr., Hébert, R. F., & Tollison, R. D. (2006). The marketplace of Christianity. Cambridge: MIT Press.
Lipford, J., & Tollison, R. D. (2003). Religious participation and income. Journal of Economic Behavior and Organization, 24, 249–260.
Lipford, J., McCormick, R. E., & Tollison, R. D. (1993). Preaching matters. Journal of Economic Behavior and Organization, 21, 235–250.
Swanson, G. E. (1967). Religion and regime: a sociological account of the Reformation. Ann Arbor: University of Michigan Press.
Tollison, R. D. (1993). Competition, monopoly, and religion. Papers and proceedings of the Virginia Association of Economists, William A. Sandrige Lecture, pp. 1–4.
Williamson, O. (1975). Markets and hierarchies: analysis and antitrust implications. New York: Free Press.
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Corresponding author
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
Ekelund, R.B., Hébert, R.F. Interest groups, public choice and the economics of religion. Public Choice 142, 429–436 (2010). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11127-009-9543-7
Received:
Accepted:
Published:
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11127-009-9543-7