Self-Governance in Science

What is it about?

Commercial and academic communities use private rules to regulate everything from labor conditions to biological weapons. This book analyzes the history of private regulation, identifies the specific market conditions that make private standards stable and enforceable, explains how governments can encourage responsible self-regulation. and asks where private power might be legitimate. Individual chapters present a detailed history of past initiatives, describe the economics and politics of private power, and extract detailed lessons for law, legitimacy theory, and public policy.

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Why is it important?

Previous accounts of private self-regulation have focused almost entirely on sociology and political science perspectives. This volume provides a detailed introduction to the economics that make private standards possible in the first place. In the process, it gives policymakers the tools they need to decide when private-public partnerships are practical and worth pursuing.