Our Portfolio

In its inaugural phase, the Tobin Center is building a set of research programs that speak to central domestic economic policy concerns. Our news items on the front page highlight some of this research. Example policy areas include the following:

Health Economics

Studying the functioning of hospital and insurance markets, analyzing drivers of variation and growth in US health care spending, and investigating the growth in the pricing of pharmaceutical products

Economics of Education

Studying the returns to educational decisions, how these returns depend on prior experience and the multidimensional human capital, and how educational decisions can be influenced by policy.

Socioeconomic Mobility and the Dynamics of Poverty

Studying institutions and policies shaping low-income households’ interactions with markets for labor, housing, credit, and education.

Competition and the New Digital Economy

Studying imperfectly competitive markets and antitrust policy, including a focus on the workings and regulation of new digital markets and platforms.