Political selection and the quality of government: evidence from south India

Besley, Timothy ORCID: 0000-0002-8923-6372, Pande, Rohini and Rao, Vijayendra (2005) Political selection and the quality of government: evidence from south India. . Suntory and Toyota International Centres for Economics and Related Disciplines, London, UK.

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Abstract

This paper uses household data from India to examine the economic and social status of village politicians, and how individual and village characteristics a®ect politician behavior while in o±ce. Education increases the chances of selection to public o±ce and reduces the odds that a politician uses political power opportunistically. In contrast, land ownership and political connections enable selection but do not a®ect politician opportunism. At the village level, changes in the identity of the politically dominant group alters the group allocation of resources but not politician opportunism. Improved information °ows in the village, however, reduce opportunism and improve resource allocation.

Item Type:	Monograph (Discussion Paper)
Official URL:	http://sticerd.lse.ac.uk/
Additional Information:	© 2005 The Authors
Divisions:	Economics STICERD
Subjects:	J Political Science > JC Political theory H Social Sciences > HB Economic Theory
Date Deposited:	10 Mar 2008 11:32
Last Modified:	11 Dec 2024 18:42
URI:	http://eprints.lse.ac.uk/id/eprint/3766

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