On the economics of institutions and technology A computational approach

The goal of this thesis is to broaden our understanding of the interactions between technology and institutions by identifying and analyzing particular economic phenomena in which such interactions occur. Using the analytical framework of microeconomics and relying heavily on computational methods, the work gathered here models instances where technology determines institutional outcomes, where institutions determine the development and adoption of technologies, or where the arrows of causation go both ways. Models with these kind of interactions account for complex phenomena, including multiplicity of equilibria, co-evolutionary lock-in and fractal basins of attraction. Policy recommendations from such models may change drastically from what simpler models would suggest.