Book excerpt: The New Institutional Economics incorporates a theory of institutions into economics. It builds upon the fundamental assumptions of scarcity and competition but abandons institutional rationality. Consequently, NIE assumes that individuals make choices based on incomplete information and limited mental capacity, forming institutions to reduce uncertainty in human exchange. These insights have implications for technological change, property rights, and public choice. The Frontiers of the New Institutional Economics presents new essays written specifically for this volume. These essays Provide an introduction to the nature and practice of the New Institutional Economics, with a special emphasis on economic history and political economy. Among the contributors are Nobel Prize winners Douglass North and Robert Fogel. Key Features * Contains essays by Nobel Prize winners Douglass North and Robert Fogel * Presents a field of economics useful to students of political science and sociology. * Applicable to studies of technological change, property rights, and public choice