諾貝爾經濟學獎頒給三位經濟學家，他們發現更自由的社會更有可能繁榮 (1/2)

Recently Yahoo News on-line picked up the following:

Nobel economics prize goes to 3 economists who found that freer societies are more likely to prosper (1/2)

Daniel Niemann, Mike Corder And Paul Wiseman

Tue, October 15, 2024 at 4:45 a.m. GMT+8·6 min read

The Associated Press

STOCKHOLM (AP) — The Nobel memorial prize in economics was awarded Monday to three economists who have studied why some countries are rich and others poor and have documented that freer, open societies are more likely to prosper.

The work by Daron Acemoglu, Simon Johnson and James A. Robinson “demonstrated the importance of societal institutions for a country’s prosperity,” the Nobel committee of the Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences said at the announcement in Stockholm.

Acemoglu and Johnson work at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, while Robinson does his research at the University of Chicago.

Jakob Svensson, chair of the Committee for the Prize in Economic Sciences, said their analysis has provided "a much deeper understanding of the root causes of why countries fail or succeed.”

Reached by the academy in Athens, Greece, where he was to speak at a conference, the Turkish-born Acemoglu, 57, said he was astonished by the award.

“You never expect something like this," he said.

Acemoglu said the research honored by the prize underscores the value of democratic institutions.

“I think broadly speaking the work that we have done favors democracy,” he said in a telephone call with the Nobel committee and reporters in Stockholm.

But, he added: “Democracy is not a panacea. Introducing democracy is very hard. When you introduce elections, that sometimes creates conflict.”

In an interview with The Associated Press, Robinson, 64, said he doubts that China can sustain its economic prosperity as long as it keeps a repressive political system.

“There’s many examples in world history of societies like that that do well for 40, 50 years," Robinson said by phone. “What you see is that’s never sustainable. ... The Soviet Union did well for 50 or 60 years.''

Robinson said many societies have successfully made the transition to what he, Acemoglu and Johnson call an “inclusive society.’’

“Look at the United States," Robinson said. “This was a country of slavery, of privilege, where women were not allowed to take part in the economy or vote.”

“Every country that is currently relatively inclusive and open made that transition," he added. "In the modern world, you’ve seen that in South Korea, in Taiwan, in Mauritius.’’

Acemoglu and Robinson wrote the 2012 bestseller, “Why Nations Fail: The Origins of Power, Prosperity, and Poverty," which argued that manmade problems were responsible for keeping countries poor.

(to be continued)

諾貝爾經濟學獎頒給三位經濟學家，他們發現更自由的社會更有可能繁榮 (1/2)

斯德哥爾摩（美聯社）- 週一，諾貝爾經濟學獎授予了三位經濟學家，他們研究了為什麼有些國家富裕而另一些國家貧窮，並證明了更自由、開放的社會更有可能繁榮。

瑞典皇家科學院諾貝爾委員會在斯德哥爾摩宣布，Daron Acemoglu、Simon Johnson和James A. Robinson的工作「證明了社會架構對一個國家繁榮的重要性」。

阿Acemoglu和Johnson在麻省理工學院工作，而Robinson在芝加哥大學進行研究。

經濟科學獎委員會主席Jakob Svensson表示，他們的分析「讓人們對各國失敗或成功的根本原因有了更深入的了解」。

57 歲的土耳其出生的Acemoglu要到希臘雅典的一個會議發言，期間他接到了在希臘的科學院的電話，他說他對這個獎項感到驚訝。

他說:「你永遠不會想到會發生這樣的事情」。

Acemoglu表示，獲獎研究強調了民主制度的價值。

他在斯德哥爾摩與諾貝爾委員會和記者通電話時表示:「我認為，從廣義上講，我們所做的工作有所垂青民主」。

但是，他補充說：「民主不是萬能藥。引入民主是非常困難的。當你引入選舉時，有時會產生衝突」。

64 歲的Robinson在接受美聯社採訪時表示，他懷疑如果中國維持高壓政治制度，就無法維持經濟繁榮。

Robinson在電話中說：「世界歷史上有很多這樣的社會有40、50 年的良好表現的例子」。「你看到的是這種情況永遠不會可持續 … 蘇聯有50 或60 年的良好表現」。

Robinson表示，許多社會已經成功過渡到他、Acemoglu和Johnson所說的「包容性社會」。

Robinson說: “看看美國” ;“這曾是一個有奴隸制，特權階级的國家，婦女不被允許參與經濟或投票。”

他補充道:“目前每個相對包容和開放的國家都做出了這一轉變”; “在現代世界，你可以在韓國、台灣和毛里求斯看到這種情況。”

Acemoglu和Robinson撰寫了 2012 年暢銷書《國家為何失敗：權力、繁榮和貧窮的起源》，書中認為人為問題是造成國家貧窮的原因。

（待續）