Credibly Committing to Property Rights The Roles of Reputation , Institutions , and the Constitution

Economic theory predicts a positive relationship between property rights and economic growth. However, few developing countries have experienced better economic performance after improving their protection of property rights. The following manuscript addresses this puzzle by directly assessing where property rights reforms have been effective. I argue that multiple, reinforcing credibility mechanisms are necessary for developing countries to guarantee property rights reforms are credible. This argument is tested using panel data spanning 72 developing countries from 1985-2005. The results suggest that only countries with a combination of checks and balances and constitutional entrenchment have benefited economically from securing property rights.