The Behavioural and Experimental Development Economics research theme combines insights from development economics - especially with those from psychology, but also sociology and anthropology - to investigate a range of development issues.

Behavioural economics is having a profound impact on the economics discipline, and its impact on development economics is also on the rise. The overwhelming evidence that economic actors do not always behave the way standard economic models assume has strong implications for understanding the process of economic development.  

We investigate topics including risk preferences, workplace norms, intrinsic motivation, norms of intra-household allocation, trust among kin, envy, fairness, the role of social status, and aspirations. This research makes use of laboratory and field experiments, as well as randomised control trials.

Our active involvement at the frontier of research in this field is receiving increasing recognition, as testified to by our accepted and forthcoming publications and joint work, some with world-renowned authorities.

We also teach in this field both at undergraduate and postgraduate level, such as the MSc in Development Economics and MSc Impact Evaluation and International Development. 

Collaboration

We work closely with other members of the Centre for Behavioural and Experimental Social Sciences (CBESS) at the UEA Social Science Faculty and with the School of Economics, one of the leading economics departments for the study of behavioural and experimental economics.