This central theme of this theoretical essay revolves around institutions and their importance for the economic development of places and nations. Initially, starting from a review of a theoretical perspective that relates organizations and institutions - institutionalist theory - we analyze both its contributions and some of the main criticisms that have been made of it, particularly with regard to economic orientation. With the objective of providing possible responses to some of its major and most emphatic critics (coming mostly from the social sciences), this is followed by the indication of an alternative route to the construction of efficient institutions, situated within studies of social capital and its influence on the relations amongst the diverse agents involved in a particular transaction. In our conclusions, our article reinforces the importance that institutions have for regional development and emphasizes the possibility of using social capital for the building of efficient institutions. We carry out a comparative analysis of both perspectives and conclude that the most intelligent option is to take advantage of the best that each can offer, thus recommending their complementary use whenever possible. Hence, our conclusions reinforce the thesis of the importance of institutions and of all the social relations that are involved in their creation and consolidation.
institutions; organizations; transaction costs; social capital; institutionalist theory
