Our faculty has structured the department to have strong coverage in applied microeconomics, econometrics, economic theory, finance, and macroeconomics. Within these areas, our faculty work on a wide range of topics in economics important to the country and the world. Some of our most impactful work focuses on:

  • The US and global financing system
  • How unemployment affects workers and the economy
  • Causes and consequences of economic inequality and poverty
  • Household economic choices and economic behavior
  • The importance of game theory and political economy to understanding economic outcomes

By focusing on these five core areas, particularly at the graduate level, the department offers a unique, specific educational experience. Aside from traditional coursework, research, and special lectures (including the Distinguished Lectures in Economics and the Newcomb Lectures), the department holds three weekly seminars to encourage collaboration and communication within these five disciplines. The seminars attract top scholars from throughout the world to discuss their work and also provide a forum for faculty and students to present their recent research.

The department also has a set of weekly brown bag seminars where graduate students present their research to their fellow students and the faculty.

Research Highlights

unemployment and the economy

Brookings Papers on economic activity BPEA Spring 2022 Conference journal cover

The Supplemental Expenditure Poverty Measure: A New Method for Measuring Poverty

Brookings Papers on Economic Activity

2022

economic behavior

Journal of mathematical economics cover

Hybrid Decision Model and the Ranking of Experiments

Journal of Mathematical Economics

2022

economic behavior

Journal of economic behavior and organization

Comparative Incompleteness: Measurement, Behavioral Manifestations and Elicitation

Journal of Economic Behavior & Organization

2023

U.S. and global financing system

The journal of finance

Due Diligence

The Journal of Finance

2024

U.S. and global financing system

The Review of Economic Studies

Market Power in Neoclassical Growth Models

The Review of Economic Studies

2023

U.S. and global financing system

Journal of Monetary Economics

Threats to Central Bank Independence: High-Frequency Identification with Twitter

Journal of Monetary Economics

Forthcoming

U.S. and global financing system

Brookings Papers 2022 conference cover

Understanding U.S. Inflation During the COVID Era

Brookings Papers on Economic Activity

2022

U.S. and global financing system

The Review of Economic Studies

Diagnostic Business Cycles

The Review of Economic Studies

2023

U.S. and global financing system

The Review of Financial Studies

Designing Securities for Scrutiny

The Review of Financial Studies

2023

U.S. and global financing system

American Economic Review logo

Belief Distortions and Macroeconomic Fluctuations

American Economic Review

2022

game theory and political economy

American Economic Review logo

Centralized Matching with Incomplete Information

American Economic Review: Insights

2022

unemployment and the economy

cover of Journal of Asian Economics

Misclassification Errors In Labor Force Statuses and the Early Identification of Economic Recessions

Journal of Asian Economics

2021

unemployment and the economy

American Economic Review logo

Missing Events in Event Studies: Identifying the Effects of Partially Measured News Surprises

American Economic Review

2020

economic behavior

American Economic Review logo

Revealed Preferences over Risk and Uncertainty

American Economic Review

2020

economic inequality and poverty

Journal of Political Economy cover

Genetic Endowments and Wealth Inequality

Journal of Political Economy

2020

U.S. and global financing system

American Economic Review logo

Bargaining and News

American Economic Review

2020

U.S. and global financing system

Review of Economic studies cover

Macroprudential Regulation Versus Mopping Up After the Crash

The Review of Economic Studies

2020

game theory and political economy

American Economic Review logo

A Mechanisms for Eliciting Second-Order Beliefs and the Inclination to Choose

American Economic Journal: Microeconomics

2018

U.S. and global financing system

Fed and Lehman Brothers book cover with a thick red line design

The Fed and Lehman Brothers: Setting the Record Straight on a Financial Disaster (book)

2018

U.S. and global financing system

Journal of finance cover

Expected Inflation and Other Determinants of Treasury Yields

The Journal of Finance

2018

economic behavior

Quantitative Economics cover

The Distribution of Wealth and the Marginal Propensity to Consume

Quantitative Economics

2017

economic inequality and poverty

Economics of Means-tested transfer programs book cover

The Economics of Means-Tested Transfer Programs in the United States, Vol. 1 (book)

2016

economic inequality and poverty

American Economic Review logo

Isolated Capital Cities, Accountability, and Corruption:  Evidence from U.S. States

American Economic Review

2014

game theory and political economy

American Economic Review logo

Mandatory vs. Discretionary Spending:  The Status Quo Effect

American Economic Review

2014