Habits of Highly Effective Nations

Daron Acemoglu, Faculty

Why do some nations thrive while others falter? Acemoglu’s answer: inclusive institutions that create incentives while guaranteeing property rights and rule of law. For his book Why Nations Fail, the economist studied the history of the Roman Empire, Mexico, Colombia, Britain, and Sierra Leone. He also examined countries such as Haiti and the Dominican Republic that share a border but experience vastly different outcomes. “The way we live continuously changes in significant ways,” he says. “We need to look to the past in the face of modern innovations in machine learning, robotics, artificial intelligence, big data, and beyond.”