Deep in the field
Book details how economist Robert Townsend has spent two decades in rural Thailand, exploring the links between household finances and economic growth.
Department
Economics
Helping students master data
An undergraduate econometrics class gets students to think critically about their own research.
Esther Duflo selected as a 2013 Dan David Prize laureate
Honored for research to alleviate poverty through disease prevention
New insight into how people choose insurance plans
Study: Consumers avoid high-deductible plans if they expect to reduce their use of medical care.
MIT report identifies keys to new American innovation
From ‘Main Street’ firms to multinationals, improvements possible in funding of research, collaboration among manufacturers.
Six MIT researchers win Sloan Research Fellowships
MIT researchers specializing in economics, mathematics, chemistry and physics are among 126 selected.
What’s the cost and financial value of college?
At MIT, experts say evidence shows the payoff from college education remains high.
Duflo, Lander, Lewin to lead spring-semester MITx courses
EdX takes stock of last semester’s MITx courses; data will be used to improve education online and in the classroom.
The high value of water
Study: People willing to pay more for running water report much higher levels of happiness when they have it.
The natural experimenter
Economist Josh Angrist uses his meticulous methods to find out what makes some schools better than others.
The health-insurance markets of the (very near) future
Policymakers must address ‘tension’ between competition and ease of use.
Study: At most a third of us show a consistent approach to financial risk
Empirically rich new study finds most people alter their risk-management approach depending on the type of financial decision.
From the water to Washington
MIT senior Noam Angrist works to reform education and health care through youth mentorship and economics.
Three awards for MIT research in anthropology, economics and political science
Mikusheva receives Elaine Bennett Research Prize; Petersen wins Distinguished Book Award; Helmreich wins Rachel Carson Prize.
How Jonathan Gruber became ‘Mr. Mandate’
An MIT economist’s path to the center of health-care policymaking in Washington.