Development – Inequality, social interactions and institutional dynamics

About

Institutions and social frictions (associated with inequalities, political conflicts, corruption, and cultural polarization) have emerged as central themes in development economics. This course takes stock of existing research and moves on to draw the outline of the current research frontier. How do institutions shape the development process? How do understudied informal institutions, such as identities and customs, interact with formal institutions? How do we interpret recent trends in inequality within low- and middle-income countries?

Our program approaches these questions by drawing on formal theory and rigorous empirical research in two core modules: “Inequality and development” and “Models of Cultural Dynamics and Social Identity”. In addition, two shorter modules develop empirical applications of the core course themes. These modules cover the role of civil conflict, corruption, and media in economic development. The objective of the program is to equip you with the background and tools you need as a researcher to contribute to this dynamic field.

Course leader

Oliver Vanden Eynde (CNRS Research Fellow and Professor at PSE)

Target group

Young professionals and students with a very good level of English

Fee info