VO
Thinker
Vincent Ostrom
Political scientist who developed the idea of polycentric governance and co-founded the Workshop in Political Theory and Policy Analysis at Indiana University.
Source attached · not independently reviewedLast verified 2026-10-01 · revision 2 · 1 reviewersRevision historyЧитать на русском
Key ideas
TheoryPublic choice theoryAn approach that applies economic models of self-interested behaviour to voters, politicians and bureaucrats. Associated with Buchanan, Tullock, Downs and Olson; its findings on rent-seeking and rational ignorance are influential and disputed.ConceptPolycentric lawA legal order in which several overlapping providers of rules and adjudication coexist, rather than one territorial monopoly.ConceptCommons governanceManagement of shared resources by their users through locally devised rules, rather than by privatisation or central state control.
Revision history
- 2026-10-23rev 2 — Seed import
- 2026-10-23rev 1 — Seed import