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"Why is religion so widespread? Why do individuals donate large amounts of time, money, and effort to religious groups? What forms does the religious competition take? Why are individuals more religious in some countries than others? What is the future of religion? This book provides a non-technical introduction to how the economic approach answers these and other questions about religion. It defines the economic approach to religion and demonstrates how it is used to study a variety of religious decisions. It explains how religious groups confront credibility, free-rider, and coordination problems that challenge the collective production of religious goods and services. It also examines competition and regulation in religious markets around the world, how religious beliefs and preferences are transmitted and sustained, how religion likely emerged in humankind's distant past, and what the future of religion may hold. The book thus demonstrates how the tools and methods of economics provide fresh insight into a variety of religious behaviors. This book is intended for a wide audience in and out of economics. Though not a textbook per se, its discussion questions and suggested readings at the end of each chapter allow for easy incorporation into the classroom. The mathematics and statistics used by researchers are generally avoided. Both theory and evidence are presented, but the focus is on the ideas that provide a coherent conceptual framework that grounds a deeper exploration of the theoretical and empirical research in the economics of religion"--

In many instances of potential violent or non-violent conflict the future strategic positions of adversaries are very different when there is open conflict than when there is settlement. In such environments we show that, as the future becomes more important, open conflict becomes more likely than settlement. We demonstrate the theoretical robustness of this finding, discuss its applicability in war, litigation, and other settings, and test it in a laboratory experiment. We find that subjects are more likely to engage in risky conflict as the future becomes more important.

The rational choice literature on religion has been noticeably silent on the nature and purpose of religious authority. I first summarize the rational choice theory of authority and offer a rational choice definition of religious authority. A primary insight is that (religious) authority exists to coordinate social action. I then argue that social coordination is a fundamental aspect of religious life, perhaps equally important as the social dilemma problems that have received attention in the literature. Finally, I apply this new rational theory to demonstrate its value. I demonstrate how rituals create religious authority; the relationship between religious authority, organizational hierarchy, and religious strictness; and how the theory creates complementarities between the two, sometimes contentious, sides of the secularization debate.

Economic growth has not led to a decline in religion despite past predictions that it would. Using a formal model of religious competition, I show how economic growth produces counteracting effects on religious activity in an open religious market, and that it has little effect in a religious market that is already secularized due to regulations that prohibit religious competition or in a highly religious market with regulations that inhibit secular activities. Theories predicting the decline of religion due to rising opportunity costs of religious demand and supply ignore countervailing influences.

African countries have experienced pervasive rent-seeking & repeated coups d'etat. I model these features to show how rent-reducing economic reforms deter coups & allow regime persistence. An incumbent ruler may choose to risk an attempted coup in the hope of surviving & obtaining high future rents. A permanent crisis that reduces future rents may be necessary for reforms, particularly if the regime is limited in its ability to credibly implement reforms. The model yields insights into the incidence of political instability & reforms in sub-Saharan African. The Ghanaian & Nigerian experiences are used as examples. Figures, Appendixes, References. [Copyright 2005 Elsevier B.V.]

Although the 1990s have witnessed unprecedented immigration and refugee flows, many receiving countries in the West, including the US, have begun to apply more restrictionist policies as a result of perceived threats to their economies and cultural homogeneity.US immigrant policy has generally responded to economic concerns and domestic pressures, while US refugee policy has reflected foreign policy concerns, especially the desire to embarrass communist systems during the Cold War. These policies have resulted in extensive immigration from Mexico and large numbers of refugees from Cuba and Nicaragua, but limited acceptance of asylum seekers from Haita, El Salvador and Guatemala.The Welfare Return Act and Illegal Immigration Reform and Immigration Responsibility Act (IIRIRA) of 1996 and Proposition 187 movement in California (1994), which were meant to limit assistance to legal immigrants, reduce illegal immigration, and improve the efficiency of asylum process, were influenced significantly by American public opinion which viewed large numbers of immigrants as a threat to the American lifestyle.This legislation also led to revisions in the Immigration and Naturalization Service's (INS) procedures including the "expedited removal" process and new guidelines on deportation and detention which many observers believe may lead to arbitrary decisions and possible violations of international guidelines. These policies present special problems for immigrants and refugees from Central America and the Caribbean who make up a large proportion of these cases.Since US policy results from a complex matrix of actors including the President, executive branch departments, Congress, the courts, state governors and legislatures and numerous interest groups, and is heavily influenced by perceptions of the American public, any attempt to modify these policies will require an extensive outreach programme on the part of UNHCR and other interested organizations.In addition, US policy makers must be encouraged to integrate immigration and refugee policy into its overall long‐term planning and to participate in efforts at regional cooperation (such as the Puebla process) in order to address the complex problems raised by current and future migration and refugee flows and ensure a more consistent and more humane response to the needs of immigrants, refugees and asylum seekers.