On July 5^th, 2011, Professor Eduardo Araral of the Lee Kuan Yew School of Public Policy, National University of Singapore, visited SPPM and delivered a engaging lecture on “Institutional Analysis: Methods and Prospects”. After meeting with Dean Prof. XUE Lan, Prof. Araral was hosted by Associate Professor WANG Yahua, Assistant Director of the Center for China Studies, who moderated the seminar. Passionate about his subject of research, Prof. Araral examined the complex subject of Institutional Analysis in a relatable and exciting way.

The seminar participants, consisting of IMPA, MID, and PhD students, were inspired by and gained a lot from Prof. Araral’s talk. Using statistics, analogies, and anecdotes, Prof. Araral spoke about the models, frameworks and theories in understanding the creation and change of the rules which govern human behavior – institutions. Seeing the audience of IMPA students from Africa and Asia, Prof. Araral tailored his lecture to fit with their research and policy interests. Prof. Araral highlighted the five elements of institutional analysis: individuals, interests, interdependence, information, and institutions (or rules). He further showed how institutional analysis can be used to look at such wide-ranging problems such as how to change institutions, transaction cost, effectiveness, credible commitment, and the theory of the firm.

Prof. Araral has 16 years of experience in teaching, research, consulting and development management in Asia. He has worked or consulted for the Asian Development Bank, the Japan Bank for International Cooperation and the World Bank. Prof. Araral is a member of the International Society for New Institutional Economics and sits on the editorial board of the Journal of Public Administration Research and Theory, the top ranked journal in its field.