genetic drift, institutional drift has no predetermined path and does not even need to be cumulative; over centuries it can lead to percep-tibie, sometimes important differences. The differences created by institutional drift become especially consequential,because they influence how society reacts to changes in economic or political circumstances during critical junctures.
The richly divergent patterns of economic development around the world hinge on the interplay of critical junctures and institutional drift. Existing political and economic institutions—sometimes shaped by a long process of institutional drift and sometimes resulting from