As countries in the twentieth and twenty-fi rst centuries change from colonialist to independent rule, or from a socialist to a democratic society, the need for a written constitution becomes apparent. Countries in the former Soviet Union, Africa, or nations once part of the British Empire face social, economic, and humanitarian problems as they experiment with democratic rule. Such issues as clearly defi ning where sovereignty lies, how much power is given to the people, and what rights are possessed by a nation's citizenry are new to these countries. While a constitution, being a man-made...

One of the most astonishing features of social, economic and political life is that large-scale patterns, structures and behavioral regularities sometimes organize themselves without anyone intentionally planning their occurrence or without anyone deliberately deciding to bring them about. They evolve as a specific kind of unintended consequence of human action. They are the result of invisible hands. Building on the classic concept "the invisible hand" by Adam Smith, this study presents a general approach, based on the theory of games and evolutionary theory, to explain such large-scale...