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SOSC 2330: Political Economy of Law, Policy and Organization
Take Home Mid Term Exam Fall 2014
Due date
: October 27, 2014 in class (2:30 pm in our lecture theatre). No
late exams will be accepted.
Weight
: 15% of final grade.
Exam format
: This exam must be submitted both as a printed hard copy, and
via our course moodle website (this will permit for Turnitin
submission). Any exams not submitted both in person and via
Turnitin will not be graded. The hard copy should be typed in
12 point font and double-spaced.
Instructions
:
1) Please answer each question as clearly and precisely as
possible, respecting the word
limit indicated.
2) You should make reference to the course readings (using
proper citation formatting) and may also refer to tutorial and
lecture materials.
3) With the exception of question 2 in Part A, where you may
conduct internet research, the only internet resources you
should use when answering the following questions are the
readings posted on the course website. A complete list of
acceptable materials can be found on page three of this
document.
4) Any exam found violating York’s policy on Academic
Misconduct shall receive a grade of 0 and may be subject to
formal disciplinary action.
Questions
:

2.
Part A
(4 short answer questions – 15% each)
Each of the following questions contains multiple components.
A complete answer must respond to all of these components.
Each answer should be 250 words in length. Answers must be
written in complete sentences and paragraphs.
DO NOT
use point form.
1) Briefly outline what is meant by
homo economicus
. With reference to the ideas of Adam Smith and to “Markets
and Ethical Values,” explain how
homo economicus
might also be an ethical and social individual.
2) Coase, in his famous essay “The Problem of Social Cost”
(1960), introduces the notion of reciprocal harm. With direct
reference to the text explain what Coase means by this idea.
Provide at least one contemporary Canadian example where the
notion of
1
SOSC 2330: Political Economy of Law, Policy and Organization
Take Home Mid Term Exam Fall 2014
reciprocal harm might be applied. Research is permitted for the
second part of this question (the contemporary Canadian
example). Be sure that your sources are credible and that you
reference them properly.
3) In his essay “Institutional Economics and Race / LatCrit
Theory” Charles Pouncy argues that
the neoclassical paradigm has a decidedly limited ability to
address issues of racism because of its analytical focus on
methodological individualism. Methodological individualism
assumes that the individual is an appropriate unit of analysis
and examination. Therefore, the neoclassical paradigm
understands economic behavior by aggregating the activity of
individuals. All social activity is understood by reference to
individual motivation and economic rationality. (Pouncy, 847)

3.
With reference to Pouncy and Medema & Mercuro’s text,
explain how institutionalist economics attempts to remedy this
purportedly limited view of economic and social reality. Give at
least one contemporary example of racism that might be better
understood from an institutionalist perspective.
4) Both Galbraith and Hanson & Yosifon present positions that
challenge the mainstream assumptions held by scholars of the
economics of law. List two ways in which the texts challenge
neoclassical assumptions about the individual and the nature of
market forces.
Part B
(Mini essay – 40%)
Please answer the following essay question as completely as
possible within the word limit. Be sure to reference specific
texts and thinkers, defining concepts when necessary. This
response should be approximately 750 words in length. Answers
must be written in complete sentences and paragraphs.
DO NOT
use point form.
Essay
:
Ian Ward’s “Law and the Political Economy” explores many of
the early connections between law and economics in the modern
European tradition. In essay format, please compare and
contrast John Locke and Karl Marx’s understanding of the
connection between law and economics. In order to substantiate
your response, you should clearly articulate the underlying
assumptions that each philosopher held about property, the
nature of society and human freedom. Be sure to cite Ward’s
text in your response.
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SOSC 2330: Political Economy of Law, Policy and Organization
Take Home Mid Term Exam Fall 2014
List of Acceptable Resources
This is a list of all texts studied in this class thus far (listed in

4.
order of appearance). These are the only relevant texts for use
in this examination, with the exception of research conducted
for question A 2. The texts listed below can all be found on the
course moodle website.
1) Ward, Ian. “Law and the Political Economy”
2) Cohen, Daniel. “Introduction” and “Gross Domestic
Happiness”
3) Rhoads, Steven. “Government and the Economy”
4) Dutt, Amitava Krishna and Charles K. Wiber. “Markets and
Ethical Values”
5) Coase, Ronald. “The Problem of Social Cost”
6) Cooter, Robert and Daniel Rubinfield. “Economic Analysis
of Legal Disputes and Their Resolution”
7) Medema, S. G., and Mercuro, N. “Institutional Law and
Economics”
8) Pouncy, Charles. “Institutional Economics and Critical
Race/Lat.Crit Theory: The Need for a Critical ‘Raced’
Economics”
9) Galbraith, J.K. “Economics as a System of Belief”
10) Hanson, Jon and Yosifon, David. “Brief Introduction to the
Situational Character” and “Brief Introduction to Power
Economics”
11) Kennedy, Duncan. “Law and Economics from the
Perspective of Critical Legal Studies”