The Politics of Order in Informal Markets

Shelby Grossman is a Research Scholar at the Stanford Internet Observatory. She holds a Ph.D. in Government from Harvard University.

• 1. Introduction; 2. Market Associations: An Overview; 3. Conducting a Representative Survey of Informal Traders; 4. A Calm Sea Does Not Make a Good Sailor: A Theory of Private Good Governance; 5. Government Threats and Group Leader Strength; 6. Business is Secret: Government Threats and Within-Group Competition; 7. Private Groups in Comparative Perspective; A. Appendix to Chapter 2 – Market Associations: An Overview; B. Appendix to Chapter 3 – Conducting a Representative Survey of Informal Traders; C. Appendix to Chapter 4 – A Calm Sea Does Not Make a Good Sailor – A Theory of Private Good Governance; D. Appendix to Chapter 6 – Government Threats and Within-Group Competition; E. Appendix to Chapter 7 – Private Groups in Comparative Perspective.

'Grossman has written a gem of a book. Private governance of the day-to-day operations of urban informal markets is under-theorized and notoriously difficult to study. Grossman brilliantly addresses these challenges, highlighting the surprising benefits of the threat of government predation and conducting an impressive survey of Lagos traders informed by rich case studies. Anyone wanting to understand the political economy of informal spaces or looking for an outstanding example of theoretically-informed fieldwork should read this book.' Gwyneth McClendon, New York University