Daniel Benjamin

Current Research FocusBehavioral Economics, Subjective Well-Being, and Genoeconomics.

Why I Study What I StudyBehavioral economics is already transforming economics and influencing policy. Subjective well-being is being taken seriously by governments around the world.

What First Inspired Me to Pursue This FieldI studied psychology before I studied economics, so behavioral economics was my natural home in economics from my early days as an undergraduate. I become interested in genoeconomics before I started graduate school (around the time the Human Genome Project was completed), when I realized that genomics would in the future have substantial interplay with the social sciences. I got drawn into the study of subjective well-being when I was a postdoc at Michigan: I had long arguments with a colleague, and we ended up deciding to do some empirical research to resolve our disagreements.

Recent FindingDozens of genetic variants associated with educational attainment.

I Really Want to Know Why......offices are indoors.

What I Want to Know NextCombining two of my interests: Can we find genes associated with subjective well-being?

Favorite High-Tech Research ToolDropbox, Skype, cloud computing

Favorite Low-Tech ToolsIced latte

MottoBe original but also careful.

This Fascinates Me About Human BehaviorBelief formation.

Hidden TalentChess master