Focal Areas
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Our faculty affiliates delve deeply into a dozen focal areas that go to the heart of the most pressing economic policy issues. But economic research doesn’t always fit into just one category. That’s why you’ll find plenty of overlap in our scholars’ interests that reflects novel collaborations and innovative research agendas.
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Education
Learn why education is one of the biggest factors in determining a person's economic outcome. -
Energy and Environment
Analyze the impact of environmental policy decisions being made in the United States and abroad. -
Global Development and Trade
Study what's behind human and economic development in low- and middle-income countries and the impact of international trade. -
Health
Examine the design of health care markets and insurance, the determinants of health and health care spending, and the impact disease and health crises have on economics. -
Housing and Infrastructure
See how housing and infrastructure policies affect economic output and the way goods and services are allocated. -
Inequality
Evaluate how policies affect inequities in housing and health care markets, schools and workplaces, criminal justice systems, and other areas with uneven opportunities. -
Innovation and Technology
Discover the causes and economic consequences of innovation and emerging technology like artificial intelligence. -
Money and Finance
Understand what shapes monetary and financial policies and their impact on millions of people. -
Politics and Media
Investigate how politics and the media shape societies in America and around the world. -
Regulation and Competition
Inspect the trade-offs between consumer protections and business innovation and productivity and how competition and market structure affects consumers and producers. -
Taxes and Public Spending
Research how taxes affect workers and businesses, and the effectiveness of government spending on defense, entitlements, education, and other programs. -
Work
See how the labor force plays a role in shaping the economy and how policies impact workplaces, employees, and families.
