Publications

Books • Papers

Through its research initiatives, the Tobin Project catalyzes new work by scholars from many institutional and disciplinary backgrounds on issues of pressing importance to society. Some Tobin research initiatives culminate in book projects or journal articles, which present original research written and edited by scholars with the assistance of the organization’s research team. In other research areas, the Tobin Project convenes scholars to develop their thinking through working papers which are often then published as academic articles. With respect to all written work, the Tobin Project aims to provide a community where scholars from varied disciplines can collaborate, test, and refine their ideas with the input of a range of scholars and practitioners.  

Books

The Tobin Project has produced several books, which aim to integrate new ways of investigating an important problem, share the best contemporary understanding of that problem, and, ideally, to unlock doors for future research, all in one accessible volume.

AAD Cover ImageAntimonopoly and American Democracy

Preview now available. Coming soon from Oxford University Press.
 
Americans today worry about concentrated power in private industry to an extent not seen in generations. After an over 40 year absence, a political and public discourse increasingly concerned about the danger of monopoly beyond its impact on consumer goods has precipitated a resurgence of activism. More » 

When Democracy Breaks


Preview now available. Coming soon from Oxford University Press.

Democracy is often described in two opposite ways, as either wonderfully resilient or dangerously fragile. Curiously, both characterizations can be correct, depending on the context. When Democracy Breaks aims to deepen our understanding of what separates democratic resilience from democratic fragility by focusing on the latter. More » 

 

Corporations and American DemocracyCorporations and American Democracy

What role have corporations played in American democracy over time and what role should they play in the present? The Tobin Project worked with fourteen leading scholars to create a rigorous new history of the relationship between the corporation and American democracy. More » 

Sustainable Security: Rethinking American National Security Strategy

Sustainable Security: Rethinking American National Security Strategy

How can the United States craft a sustainable national security strategy in a world of shifting threats, sharp resource constraints, and a changing balance of power? More » 

Preventing Capture: Special Interest Influence in Regulation and How to Limit ItPreventing Capture: 
Special Interest Influence and How to Limit It

Recent crises in (de)regulated industries have made it clear that regulation is both necessary and, in many cases, in need of significant improvement. More »

Race, Reform and Regulation of the Electoral ProcessRace, Reform and Regulation of the Electoral Process

This book offers a critical re-evaluation of three fundamental and interlocking themes in American democracy: the relationship between race and politics, the performance and reform of election systems, and the role of courts in regulating the political process. More »

Government and Markets: Toward a New Theory of RegulationGovernment & Markets: Toward a New Theory of Regulation

As the financial crisis has shown, neither traditional market failure models nor public choice theory, by themselves, sufficiently inform or explain our current regulatory challenges, nor point us toward the best solutions. More »

New Perspectives on RegulationNew Perspectives on Regulation

New regulation shouldn't rely on old ideas. Since the 1960s, influential research on government failure has helped to drive the movement for deregulation and privatization. More »

The Prudent Use of Power in American National Security StrategyThe Prudent Use of Power in American National Security Strategy

In The Prudent Use of Power in American National Security Strategy, a compendium of ten essays originally presented at the Tobin Project’s December 2009 conference, leading scholars examine the utility of “nonkinetic” (or non-military) power in U.S. national security policy. More »

How to Make America Safe: New Policies for National SecurityHow To Make America Safe: New Policies for National Security

How can we make America safe? The Tobin Project posed this question to eleven leading scholars of foreign policy and national security. More »