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On institutions for collective action in general
> How important are institutions for collective action for economic development?
> What role do institutions for collective action play in social capital formation?
> Was Europe’s development of institutions for collective action from the Late Middle Ages onwards exceptional?
> What was the role of legal changes in the formation of institutions for collective action in Western Europe?
> How can institutions be resilient/robust?
> How can we explain the emergence of institutions for collective action in Western Europe?
> What is the effect of community homegeneity on institutions for collective action?
> What is the effect of group size on the level of cooperation?
On commons as institutions for collective action
> Can common property regimes can be ‘sustainable’ and ‘efficient’, or are they instead always doomed to over-exploitation?
On guilds as institutions for collective action
> Why did craftsmen (and -women) start organizing into guilds?
> What was the political position of guilds?
> What was the position of women in relation to the guilds?
> Is an international comparison of guilds viable?
> Did guilds trade their sociability for professionalization? What were the consequences?
> What role did guilds play in human capital formation?
> Were all guild members equal?
> Is there a link between the present-day insurance system in Western Europe and the old guild system?
> Is there a linkage to be found between the old guild system and contemporary trade unions ? (China only)
> Were guilds an impediment to economic growth? (China only)
> How did journeymen’s boxes originate?
> Was (formalized) mutual aid a social necessity or a way of creating extra revenues?
On waterboards as institutions for collective action
> What is the relationship between the Dutch history in water management and the present-day ‘poldermodel’?
> To what extent did waterboards contribute to a sustainable management of natural resources ?
On beguinages as institutions for collective action
> Where does the name 'beguines' come from?
On marriage patterns and institutions for collective action
> How can a change in the marriage pattern lead to more freedom to organise in non-kin-related groups?
> How can we study the relationships between institutions for collective action and marriage patterns?
> What characterizes the EMP?
> Is there a relationship between the EMP and the shift from kin- to community-based social security?
> What stimulated young unmarried women in Western Europe to work outside their parents’ households?
> How are marriage patterns, marriage exchange and inheritance related?
> How is genealogical data useful for historical research?
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