Institutions are clearly exogenous to household decisions. Analysis of institutions can thus in theory proceed from the household level and avoid the problem of endogeneity. This assertion is tested through a replication of Acemoglu, Johnson and Robinson's (2001) seminal paper. Replication at...

This paper describes a classroom simulation of a simple economy. The simulation is similar in structure to classroom experiments, but it is carried out regularly throughout the term. This repetition allows for a less deterministic simulation and also lets students become comfortable in the...

Africa has seen a steady rise in democracy since the end of the Cold War. This paper investigates two possible implications of democratization in African countries: better economic growth through improved institutions and less civil conflict through increased political participation....

Previous research on contracting institutions suggests that legal systems in developing countries are either too formal or unrelated to economic growth. This paper shows a strong quadratic effect of legal formalism on household wealth in a sample of over a million households in 64 developing...

Pedagogical research shows that teaching methods other than traditional lectures may result in better outcomes. However, lecture remains the dominant method in economics, likely due to high implementation costs of methods shown to be effective in the literature. This paper shows significant...

Criticism of higher education and tight budgets have increased pressure on instructors to consider new pedagogical methods, including extensive use of classroom experiments and online or hybrid/online courses. This study analyzes the impact of different pedagogical methods in six sections of...

This paper analyzes persistence and attainment in postsecondary STEM education using data from the Beginning Postsecondary Students Longitudinal Study. Ability is shown to have a consistent impact on STEM performance. Self-efficacy has large estimated impacts and there is evidence of strong bias...

This paper analyzes impacts of democratization in Africa, including effects of improved property rights on economic growth and greater political participation on civil violence. Democracy is endogenous to economic growth and other outcomes, which hampers most empirical analysis. This paper uses...