Institutions in British Property Research: A Review

Abstract

This paper surveys approaches to the study of institutions, as used in recent commercial property research in Britain. Institutional analysis can be approached from mainstream economics, power, structure-agency and structures of provision methodologies. Each is elaborated and evaluated. Important differences arise between them, which are related primarily to issues of theory and method rather than over whether institutions matter. Any particular piece of analysis has to make assumptions, and here it is true that many economic models have only limited, stylised institutional behaviour. Those that wish for more institutional input, however, have to demonstrate the greater explanatory power of doing so.