"Institutional Thickness" and local economic development: insights on local governments´ role from the case of Birmingham

Within the theoretical and empirical debate on local economic development, a relevant issue is whether local governments have a role to play in the promotion of local economies. The institutional thickness framework identifies the necessary conditions for a successful local economy with reference to the features of the institutional milieu, but is not explicit about whether local governments have a specific role in favouring them. This paper uses the analysis of an empirical case which shows the features described by the institutional thickness paradigm (both as regards its assumptions – concerning the pattern of institutional relationships – and its conclusions about local economic performance), to investigate the specific role that a local government has played in promoting them and thus, if the conclusions of the framework are valid, in favouring local economic development. Moving from the specific to the general, the case study aims at providing some insights into the role of local governments in local economic development. It also develops a methodology for the operationalisation of the institutional thickness paradigm, which is the basis for the analysis done in the paper.