Events

Author:

• Professor Xiaobo ZHANG
  Chair Professor of Economics
  National School of Development
  Peking University

Abstract:

Supporting institutions and policies play a key role in facilitating firms to upgrade product quality. However, the emergence of quality-supporting institutions has not been well studied. Based on both qualitative and quantitative evidence in Chinese clusters, this paper shows that quality-enhancing institutions and policies often emerge in response to crises. Crises, such as consumer boycotts and impositions of export barriers, can catalyze collective actions from entrepreneurs and local governments to improve product quality.