Skip to main content
Log in

Evolutionary Equilibria in Capital Tax Competition with Imitative Learning

  • Article
  • Published:
Evolutionary and Institutional Economics Review Aims and scope Submit manuscript

Abstract

This paper presents an alternative model where each decision maker takes an economy-wide net return to capital parametrically even in tax competition among finite nonatomistic jurisdictions. To this end, we examine a long-run equilibrium of a tax competition game adopting an evolutionary game-theoretic approach. We find that a unique evolutionarily stable strategy coincides with the strategy consisting of a unique stochastically stable state in the imitative dynamics of tax competition. Moreover, in the evolutionary equilibria, we obtain the same result as in the “purely competitive” equilibrium even with finite nonatomistic jurisdictions.

This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.

Access this article

Price excludes VAT (USA)
Tax calculation will be finalised during checkout.

Instant access to the full article PDF.

Similar content being viewed by others

References

  • Alós-Ferrer, C., A. B. Ania and K. R. Schenk-Hoppé (2000) “An Evolutionary Model of Bertrand Oligopoly,” Games and Economic Behavior 33: 1–19.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Bergin, J. and D. Bernhardt (2004) “Comparative Learning Dynamics,” International Economic Review 45.2: 431–465.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Besley, T. and A. Case (1995) “Incumbent Behavior: Vote-seeking, Tax-setting, and Yardstick Competition,” American Economic Review 85.1: 25–45.

    Google Scholar 

  • Bucovetsky, S. (1991) “Asymmetric Tax Competition,” Journal of Urban Economics 30: 167–181.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Ellison, G. (2000) “Basins of Attraction, Long-run Stochastic Stability, and the Speed of Step-by-step Evolution,” Review of Economic Studies 67: 17–45.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Foster, D. and P. Young (1990) “Stochastic Evolutionary Game Dynamics,” Theoretical Population Biology 38: 219–232.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Freidlin, M. I. and A. D. Wentzell (1984) Random Perturbations of Dynamic Systems, Springer-Verlag, New York.

    Book  Google Scholar 

  • Hoyt, W. H. (1991) “Property Taxation, Nash Equilibrium, and Market Power,” Journal of Urban Economics 30: 123–131.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Kandori, M., G. J. Mailath and R. Rob (1993) “Learning, Mutation, and Long Run Equilibria in Games,” Econometrica 61.1: 29–56.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Schaffer, M. E. (1988) “Evolutionarily Stable Strategies for a Finite Population and a Variable Contest Size,” Journal of Theoretical Biology 132: 469–478.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • — (1989) “Are Profit-maximizers the Best Survivors?: A Darwinian Model of Economic Natural Selection,” Journal of Economic Behavior and Organization 12: 29–45.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Tiebout, C. M. (1956) “A Pure Theory of Local Expenditures,” Journal of Political Economy 64: 416–424.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Vega-Redondo, F. (1997) “The Evolution of Walrasian Behavior,” Econometrica 65.2: 375–384.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Wildasin, D. E. (1988) “Nash Equilibria in Models of Fiscal Competition,” Journal of Public Economics 35: 229–240.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Wilson, J. D. (1986) “A Theory of Interregional Tax Competition,” Journal of Urban Economics 19: 296–315.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Wrede, M. (2001) “Yardstick Competition to Tame the Leviathan,” European Journal of Political Economy 17: 705–721.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Young, P. (1993) “The Evolution of Conventions,” Econometrica 61.1: 57–84.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Zodrow, G. R. and P. Mieszkowski (1986) “Pigou, Tiebout, Property Taxation, and the Underprovision of Local Public Goods,” Journal of Urban Economics 19: 356–370.

    Article  Google Scholar 

Download references

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

Authors

Corresponding author

Correspondence to Hiroyuki Sano.

About this article

Check for updates. Verify currency and authenticity via CrossMark

Cite this article

Sano, H. Evolutionary Equilibria in Capital Tax Competition with Imitative Learning. Evolut Inst Econ Rev 9 (Suppl 1), S1–S23 (2012). https://doi.org/10.14441/eier.9.S1

Download citation

  • Published:

  • Issue Date:

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.14441/eier.9.S1

Keywords

JEL

Navigation