Roger D. Congleton

  Truist Professor of Economics
West Virginia University (2011-present)
President Public Choice Society (2018-2020)
Coeditor Constitutional Political Economy (2013-present)

Forthcoming and 2023 Publications

[Links to published versions are provided by the page numbers,
links to pre-published versions are provided by the titles.]
Optimal Taxation for Democracies with Less than Perfect Voters: A Public Choice Perspective. Kyklos (2023, prepublication).

Grounding Multidisciplinary Public Policy Analysis in Methodological Individualism:With an Illustrating Study of the Economic and Political Effects of Variations in a Nation’s Average Work Ethic. International Journal of Economic Policy Studies (2023, prepublication). "Public Choice and Good Governance," Encyclopedia of Public Choice (C. Bjornskov and J. A. Pin, Eds) (Edward Elgar, forthcoming)
"Federalism and Tax-Financed Healthcare, Economic Advantages, Dilemmas and Solutions," Handbook of the Political Economy of Healthcare Systems (J Costa-Font, Turati, G., and A. Batinti, Eds) Edward Elgar (2023):.57-69. "The Median Voter Model," Encyclopedia of Public Choice (C. Bjornskov and J. A. Pin, Eds) (Edward Elgar, forthcoming)
Federalism and Pandemic Policies: Variety Is the Spice of Life. Public Choice (2023) 195: 73-100.
 Basic Properties of a Simplified Oxford Model of Covid Transmission: Simulations, Conclusions, and Comments on the Corona Virus (An Excel File, updated May 2021, can be reparameterized by downloading it).
Recently Published (2016-22)
Book. Solving Social Dilemmas: Ethics, Politics, and Prosperity. Oxford University Press (460 pages, 2022). (Prepublication Preface). Link to Tridimas Review, Munger Review, Haliday Review (EC and Phil)

Behavioral Economics and the Virginia School of Political Economy: Overlaps and Complementarities." Public Choice (2022) 191: 387-404. Readership and Citations as Alternative Measures of Impact (w. A. Cardazzi and A. Marsella) Constitutional Political Economy (2022) 33: 100-14.
Ethics and Good Governance, Public Choice (2020) 184: 379-98. Governance by True Believers: Supreme Duties with and without Totalitarianism, Constitutional Political Economy (2020) 31(1): 111-141.
The Institutions of International Treaty Organizations as Evidence for Social Contract Theory, European Journal of Political Economy (2020) 63: 101891. "On the Stability of U.S. Politics: Post-Sample Forecasts and Refinements of the Congleton-Shughart Models of Social Security and Medicare Benefit Levels." Public Choice (2020) 183: 101-132.
"Fiscal Bargaining and the Implicit Fiscal Constitutions of Liberal Democracies: A Public Choice Perspective," Public Policy Review, (2019) 15 (2): 175-198.
"Toward a Rule-Based Model of Human Choice:  On the Nature of Homo Constitutionalus," in  R. E. Wagner (Ed.) James M. Buchanan: A Theorist of Political Economy and Social Philosophy. Volume III of the series Remaking Economics: Eminent Post-War Economists. New York: Palgrave Macmillan.(2019): 769-805.
"On the Emergence of a Classic Work: A Short History of the Impact of Gordon Tullock's Welfare Costs of Tariffs, Monopolies, and Theft,"  Public Choice (2019) 181 (1-2): 5-12. On the Evolution of Organizational Governance,” in Understanding Economic Change: Advances in Evolutionary Economics (U. Witt ed), Cambridge University Press (2019): 258-287.
"A Test of the Institutionally-Induced Equilibrium Hypothesis: On the Limited Fiscal Impact of Two Celebrity Governors," (with Y. Zhou) Economics of Governance (2019) 20(2): 103-128.
"On the Political Economy of Privacy in Communities that Include both Friends and Foes," Journal of Public Finance and Public Choice (2018) 33: 127-44. Book: Oxford Handbook of Public Choice (Volume 1, Volume 2) (Coedited with. B. Grofman and S. Voigt) Oxford University Press (Fall 2018)
          Link to Prepublication Preface
          Link to Prepublication Chapter 1 (rationality and politics)
          Link to Prepublication Chapter 27 (rent creation and extraction)
"On the Codetermination of Tax-Financed Medical R&D and Healthcare Expenditures: Models and Evidence," (with A. Batinti) European Journal of Political Economy (2018) 54: 175-88.
Buchanan on Ethics and Self-Interest in Politics: A Contradiction or Reconciliation? ,” in: Buchanan’s Tensions: Reexamining the Political Economy and Philosophy of James M. Buchanan, eds. Peter J. Boettke and Solomon Stein. Arlington, VA: Mercatus Center at George Mason University (2018).
"Intellectual Foundations of Public Choice, the Forest from the Trees," Public Choice (2018) 175: 229-44. "Parliaments as Governmental Institutions,"  Oxford Research Encyclopedia of Politics (2018).
"A Short History of Constitutional Liberalism in America," Constitutional Political Economy (2018) 29: 137-170. "Constitutional Bargaining and the Quality of Contemporary African Institutions: A Test of the Incremental Reform Hypothesis" ( with DW Yoo) Journal of Institutional Economics (2018) 14: 233-58.
The Electoral Politics and Evolution of Complex Healthcare Systems. (with A. Batinti and R. Pietrantonio), Kyklos (2017) 70 (4): 483-510.
Robert Tollison and the Economics of Politics,” Public Choice (2017) 171: 23-28. Gordon Tullock’s Implicit Analytical History of Government,” Constitutional Political Economy (2016) 27: 179-193.
Other Publications while at WVU (2011-15)
For a Complete List of Books, Journal Articles,
Book Chapters, Book Reviews, and Presentations,
see my Vita or Google Scholar page.
"The Logic of Collective Action and Beyond," Public Choice (2015) 164: 217-34. Japanese Translation of Perfecting Parliament. A Yokayama, H. Kato and colleagues. Tokyo Keiso Shobo. ISBN978-4-326-50416-9 Fall 2015). 
Thanks to Gordon Tullock,” Public Choice (2015) 162:229-33. Book: Companion to the Political Economy of Rent Seeking (Edited with A. L. Hillman) Edgar Elgar (2015). [Front Matter/Preface.] 
Asymmetric Federalism: Constitutional and Fiscal Exchange, and the Political Economy of Decentralization,. in Ahmad, S. E. and Brosio, G. Handbook for Multilevel Finance, Cheltenham: Edgar Elgar (2015, Ch. 6).
The Nature of Rent Seeking,” in A Companion to the Political Economy of Rent Seeking. (Edited, with A. Hillman) London: Edward Elgar Press. (2015, ch. 1).
Risk, Uncertainty, and Constitutional Design,” Behind a Veil of Ignorance? Power and Uncertainty in Constitutional Design. L. M. Imbeau and S. Jacob (eds) Edward Elgar (2015, Forward). ."Rent Seeking and Organizational Governance:Limiting Losses from Intra-Organizational Conflict," Companion to the Political Economy of Rent Seeking (Edited with A. L. Hillman) Edgar Elgar (2015, ch.27).
The Contractarian Constitutional Political Economy of James Buchanan. Constitutional Political Economy (2014) 25: 39-67. "Coercion, Taxation, and Voluntary Association," in Coercion and Social Welfare in Public Finance, S. Winner (ed.) Cambridge University Press (2014): Ch. 4.
On the Inevitability of Divided Government and Improbability of a Complete Separation of Powers. Constitutional Political Economy (2013) 24: 177-98. On Some Neglected, But Profound, Contributions of Gordon Tullock," in D. Lee (ed.) The Origins of Public Choice: The Legacy of Buchanan and Tullock. Hieldelberg: Springer (2013, ch. 3).

Is It All about Competence? The Human Capital of U.S. Presidents and Economic Performance. (with Jongjing Zhang) Constitutional Political Economy (2013) 24: 108-24.

"Public Choice and the Modern Welfare State," (with A. Batinti, F. Bose, Y. Kim, and R. Pietrantonio) in in Shughart, W. F., L. Razzolini and M. Reksulak (Eds) Elgar Companion to Public Choice, Cheltenham: Edward Elgar. (2013, ch. 22).
"Early Spanish Liberalism and the Constitutional Political Economy, the Cadiz Constitution of 1812," in Cabrillo, F, and Puchades-Navarro M. A. (Eds) Constitutonal Economics and Public Institutions, Cheltenham: Edward Elgar Publishing (2013, Ch. 4). "Growing up with the Calculus of Consent," Public Choice 152 (2012): 273-78.
"On the Political Economy and Limits of Crisis Insurance: the Case of the2008–11 Bailouts." Public Choice 150 (2012): 399-423. "The Constitutional Political Economy of Gordon Tullock," Public Choice 152 (2012): 131-46.

"Rent Extraction, Liberalism, and Economic Development," in Institutions and National Competitiveness. (Y. B. Choi Ed.). London: Rutledge (2011, ch. 4).


"Why Local Governments Do Not Maximize Profits: On the Value Added by the Representative Institutions of Town and City Governance," Public Choice 149 (2011): 187-201.
Book. Perfecting Parliament: Constitutional Reform, Liberalism, and the Rise of Western Democracy (Cambridge University Press 2011).

 [Link to introduction] [Blurb and book at Amazon] [Link to Tridimas Review in EJPE] [Link to Strom Review in PoP]
Other Fairly Recent Publications
(Published while at GMU: 2000-2010)
For a Complete List of Books, Journal Articles,
Book Chapters, Book Reviews, and Presentations,
see my Vita or Google Scholar page.
"The Rise of the Modern Welfare State, Ideology, Institutions, and Income Security: Analysis and Evidence," (with F. Bose) Public Choice 144 (2010): 535-55. "The Political Economy of the Financial Crisis of 2008," Lessons from the Financial Crisis (R. W. Kolb, Ed.) New York: Wiley and Sons Inc. (2010, pp. 23-9).
"Efficient Mercantilism? Revenue-Maximizing Monopolization Policies as Ramsey Taxation" (with Sanghack Lee) European Journal of Political Economy 25 (2009): 102-14. On the Political Economy of the Financial Crisis and Bailout of 2008-09. Public Choice 140 (2009): 287-317.
"On the Distributional Effects of Political Decision Making, An Overview and Synthesis of Public Choice Research," International Journal of Economic Policy Studies 3 (2008): 1-30. (Lead Article) Book: 40 Years of Rent Seeking Research. (2 Volumes) Edited with introduction by R. D. Congleton, A. L Hillman and K. Konrad. Heidelberg: Springer (2008).
"America’s Neglected Debt to the Dutch, An Institutional Perspective," Constitutional  Political Economy 19 (2008): 35-60. “The Moral Voter Hypothesis: Economic and Normative Aspects of Public Policy Formation within Democracies,” Journal of Public Finance and Public Choice 25 (2007): 3-30. (Published in 2008)
"Informational Limits to Democratic Public Policy: The Jury Theorem, Yardstick Competition, and Ignorance," Public Choice 132 (2007): 333-352. "On the Feasibility of a Liberal Welfare State: Agency and Exit Costs in Income Security Clubs," Constitutional Political Economy 18 (2007): 145-159. (Lead Article)
"From Royal to Parliamentary Rule without Revolution, the Economics of Constitutional Exchange within Divided Governments," European Journal of Political Economy 23 (2007): 261-284. (Lead Article) Review of Understanding Institutional Diversity by Elinor Ostrom. Public Choice 132 (2007): 509-11.
"Constitutional Exchange in Japan: from Shogunate to Parliamentary Democracy," Public Choice Studies 47 (2006): 5-29. Book: Democratic Constitutional Design and Public Policy, Analysis and Evidence. (Edited with B. Swedenborg) Cambridge Mass: MIT Press (2006) ISBN 0-262-53280-8.
"International Public Goods and Agency Problems in Treaty Organizations," Review of International Organizations 1 (2006): 319-336. (Lead Article) Links to Preface and Table of Contents,
    to Introduction and Overview, Chapter 1
 to Unbiased Bicameralism, Chapter 6,
    to Amendment Procedures, Chapter 12.
"The Story of Katrina: New Orleans and the Political Economy of Catastrophe," Public Choice 127 (2006): 5-30. "Asymmetric Federalism and the Political Economy of Decentralization," Handbook of  Fiscal Federalism. E. Ahmad and G. Brosio, Eds., Edgar Elgar Publishers, Ltd. (2006): 131-153.
"Toward a Political Economy of Crisis Management: Rational Choice, Ignorance, and Haste in Political Decision Making," Dynamics of InterventionAdvances in Austrian Economics, vol 8. (2005): 183-204. "The Globalization of Politics: Rational Choice and the Internationalization of Public Policy," Civilization 10 (2006): 35-45.
"Mutual Advantages of Coercion and Exit within Private Clubs and Treaty Organizations: Toward a Logic of Voluntary Association," Revista de Political Economy (2004): 49-78.  (Published in 2005)
"Social Science and History: How Predictable is Political Behavior?" in Understanding Change: Economics, Natural and Social Sciences in Dialogue. A. Wimmer, Ed. New York: Palgrave Macmillan (2005): 260-69.

"The Political Economy of Gordon Tullock," Public Choice 121 (2004): 213-38.
"Toward a Political Economy of Crisis Management: Rational Choice, Ignorance, and Haste in Political Decision Making," Public Choice Studies 43 (2004): 5-16. (Published in Japanese as lead article.)
"Economic Development and Democracy, Does Industrialization Lead to Universal Suffrage?" Homo Economicus 21 (2004): 283-311. Chinese Translation of  Politics by Principle, Not Interest: Towards Nondiscriminatory Democracy. (with James M. Buchanan) Beijing (2004) ISBN 7801901630.
"Economic and Cultural Prerequisites for Democracy" in Rational Foundations of Democratic Politics.  Breton, A., Galeotti, G., Salmon, P., and Wintrobe, R. Eds.  New York: Cambridge University Press (2003): 44-67. Book: Improving Democracy through Constitutional Reform: Some Swedish Lessons. Kluwer Academic Press, 2003.  (Link to English Preface.) 
"On the Merits of Bicameral Legislatures: Policy Predictability within Partisan Polities," Year Book of New Political Economy Vol. 22.  M. J. Holler, H. Kliemt, D. Schmidtchen, and M. E. Streit. Eds., Tübingen, Germany: Mohr Siebeck. (2003): 29-54. Swedish Translation of Improving Democracy, Att Förbättra Demokratin was published by SNS Forlag, 2002. See the comments by Speaker Sydow of the Riksdag about the Swedish version of the book, in English.)
"The Future of Public Choice,"  Public Choice Studies 40 (2003): 5-23.  (Published in English, Lead Article)

 Entries for The Encyclopedia of Public Choice, C. K. Rowley and F. Schneider, Ed.s Kluwer Academic Press (2003). 
The Median Voter Model
Rent Seeking and Political Institutions
Generality and the Efficiency of Government
Environmental Politics and Economic Development
 "A Theory of Menu Federalism: Decentralization by Political Agreement," (with Andreas Kyriacou and Jordi Bacaria) Constitutional Political Economy 14 (2003): 167-90. (Lead article) "Agency Problems and the Allocation of International Environmental Grants: the Return to Rio," Economia Delle Scelte Pubbliche (2002/3): 125-146.
"Tax-Base Enforcement and Leviathan: On the Allocation of Tax Enforcement Effort," Public Finance Review 30 (2002): 456-476. Japanese Translation of Economic Analysis of Rent Seeking (Edited, with R. D. Tollison) published in Japanese as the Economics of Rent Seeking. (H. Kato),  Tokyo: Kieso Sobo, ISBN4 326-50231-2.  264 pages. (2002)
"Buchanan and the Virginia School," in Method and Morals in Constitutional Economics. Essays in Honor of James M. Buchanan. Berlin: Springer Verlag. (2002): 23-38. "Terrorism, Interest Group Politics, and Public Policy: Curtailing Criminal Modes of Political Speech"  (prepublication/final copy) Independent Review (2002):47-67.
"On the Durability of King and Council: The Continuum Between Dictatorship and Democracy,"Constitutional Political Economy 12 (2001): 193-215.  "The Politics of Government Growth," in Shughart, W. F. and Razzolini L. Elgar Companion to Public Choice, Edward Elgar Publishers, Ltd. (2001): 457-478.
"Help, Harm or Avoid: On the Personal Advantage of Dispositions to Cooperate and Punish in Multilateral PD Games with Exit," (with V. Vanberg)  Journal of Economic Behavior and Organization 44 (2001): 145-167. "Governing the Global Environmental Commons: The Political Economy of International Environmental Treaties and Institutions," in Schulze, G. G. and Ursprung, H. W. Eds. Globalization and the Environment.  New York: Oxford University Press (2001): 241-263.
"Rational Ignorance and Rationally Biased Expectations: The Discrete Informational Foundations of Fiscal Illusion," Public Choice 107 (2001): 35-64. "In Defense of Ignorance," Eastern Economic Journal 27 (2001): 391-408.
"A Political Efficiency Case for Federalism in Multinational States: Controlling Ethnic Rent-Seeking,"  Galeotti, G. Slamon, P. and Wintrobe, R. (Eds.) Competition and Structure:  The Political Economy of Collective Decisions: Essays in Honor of Albert Breton. New York: Cambridge University Press (2000): 365-397.