Applied Microeconomics: Political Economy

Political economy is the subfield of economics that considers the interplay of political factors and political institutions in determining policy outcomes. It considers economic policies as well as policies of other types. Daron Acemoglu has been studying the links between political and governance structures and economic growth. Abhijit Banerjee is investigating political economy issues that bear on economic development. Mikhail Golosov is working on how political economy constraints affect tax policy design. James Snyder, who holds a joint appointment in Economics and Political Science, works on many of the core issues in collective choice and the economic and political effects of legislative institutions. Snyder teaches a graduate course on rational choice, the theory of voting, legislatures, and similar issues. Daron Acemoglu and Abhijit Banerjee offer a graduate course focusing on the interaction of political institutions and economic growth and development. Several other faculty are also interested in political economy. Paul Joskow and James Poterba have substantial interests in applied political economy, particularly with respect to regulatory and tax policy. Simon Johnson, a member of the Sloan School faculty, works actively on the links between political institutions and economic development. Graduate students interested in political economy can also enroll in a number of other courses that are offered jointly with the Political Science Department.