On Sharecropping: A Review of Modern Theories (di Pasquale Commendatore) - ABSTRACT:
In this paper, we provide an analytical treatment and comparison of the three principal pure forms of land tenure: owner-occupancy, fixed-rent tenancy and share-rent tenancy or sharecropping. The analysis is of a static nature following the standard treatment of this topic in the literature. We provide also a review of the debate on the efficiency of sharecropping. In doing so, we look more attentively at some crucial aspects of land tenancy that have emerged in recent contributions and that have been overlooked in previous assessments of share-rent tenancy, such as the role of conventions, the existence of imperfect credit markets and the consequent relevance of the timing of payments. A proper treatment of these aspects requires the framing of the existing analyses in a dynamic context.