Richard Zeckhauser

Frank Plumpton Ramsey Professor of Political Economy
Kennedy School
Office Address
Littauer-312
Mailing Address
John F. Kennedy School of Government
Mailbox 41
79 JFK Street
Cambridge, MA 02138
Contact
Phone: 617-495-1174
Fax: 617-384-9340
Email: richard_zeckhauser@Harvard.Edu
Assistant
Wendy Wyatt (617-495-1175)
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Profile

Richard Zeckhauser is the Frank P. Ramsey Professor of Political Economy. Much of his conceptual research examines possibilities for democratic, decentralized allocation procedures. Many of his policy investigations explore ways to promote the health of human beings, to help markets work more effectively, and to foster informed and appropriate choices by individuals and government agencies. He teaches an advanced course in analytic methods, the Ph.D. writing seminar, and chairs the annual executive program on Investment Decisions and Behavioral Finance. He has been elected as a fellow of the Econometric Society and the American Academy of Sciences and as a member of the Institute of Medicine (National Academy of Sciences). He has come first (Mixed Pairs, 2007), second (Mixed Teams, 2003), and third (Open Pairs, 2004) in recent national contract bridge championships. He serves as a Trustee for The Commonwealth School and as a member of NBER, the Russell Sage Roundtable in Behavioral Economics, the Academic Advisory Committee, American Enterprise Institute, and the OECD High Level Advisory Board on Large-Scale Catastrophes. His latest book, with Peter Schuck, is Targeting in Social Programs: Avoiding Bad Bets and Removing Bad Apples. His forthcoming book, with Jonathan Nelson, is The Patron's Payoff: Conspicuous Commissions in Renaissance Italy. He holds a BA (summa cum laude) and a PhD in economics from Harvard University.

Courses

Fall

  • API-302 Analytic Frameworks for Policy

Media Expertise

Richard Zeckhauser welcomes media inquiries on the following subjects:

Additional experts may be found by clicking on each subject listed. You may contact faculty directly or if you need assistance contact the Communications Office at 617-495-1115.

Research

Research for a complete list of faculty citations from 2001 - present, please visit the Harvard Kennedy School Research Report Online.

Selected Publication Citations:

  • Academic Journals
    • Bohnet, Iris, Fiona Greig, Benedikt Herrman, and Richard Zeckhauser. "Betrayal Aversion: Evidence from Brazil, China, Oman, Switzerland, Turkey, and the United States." American Economic Review 98.1 (2008): 294-310.
    • Frank, Richard G., and Richard Zeckhauser. "Custom-Made versus Ready-to-Wear Treatments: Behavioral Propensities in Physicians’ Choices." Journal of Health Economics 26.6 (December 2007): 1101-1127.
    • Sommers, Benjamin D., Clair J. Beard, Anthony V. D'Amico, Douglas Dahl, Irving Kaplan, Jerome P. Richie, and Richard J. Zeckhauser. "Decision Analysis Using Individual Patient Preferences to Determine Optimal Treatment for Localized Prostate Cancer." Cancer 110.10 (November 2007): 2210-2217.
    • Miller, Nolan, John W. Pratt, Richard Zeckhauser, and Scott Johnson. "Mechanism Design with Multidimensional, Continuous Types and Interdependent Valuations." Journal of Economic Theory 136.1 (September 2007): 476-496.
    • Moselle, Boaz, Francois Degeorge, and Richard Zeckhauser. "Conspicuous Conservatism in Risk Choice." Journal of Risk and Uncertainty 35.1 (August 2007): 1-16.
    • Rizzo, John A., and Richard Zeckhauser. "Pushing Incomes to Reference Points: Why Do Male Doctors Earn More?" Journal of Economic Behavior and Organization 63.3 (July 2007): 514-536.
    • Keohane, Nathaniel, Benjamin Van Roy, and Richard Zeckhauser. "Managing the Quality of a Resource with Stock and Flow Controls." Journal of Public Economics 91.3-4 (April 2007): 541-569.
    • Schauer, Frederick, and Richard Zeckhauser. "Regulation by Generalization." Regulation and Governance 1.1 (2007): 68-87.
    • Zhang, Ruifang, Karen Eggleston, Vincent Rotimi, and Richard Zeckhauser4. "Antibiotic resistance as a global threat: Evidence from China, Kuwait and the United States." Globalization and Health 2.6 (April 2006).
    • Kousky, Carolyn, Sam Walsh, and Richard Zeckhauser. "Options Contracts for Contingent Takings." Issues in Legal Scholarship, Catastrophic Risks: Prevention, Compensation, and Recovery 10/art 2 (2007).
  • Book Chapters
    • Zeckhauser, Richard. "Thomas Schelling: Richochet Thinker." The Strategist: The Life and Times of Thomas Schelling. Ed. Robert Dodge. Hollis Publishing, 2006, vii-xii.
  • Books
    • Avery, Christopher, Andrew Fairbanks, and Richard Zeckhauser. The Early Admissions Game: Joining the Elite. Harvard University Press, 2003.
    • Schuck, Peter H., and Richard Zeckhauser. Targeting in Social Programs: Avoiding Bad Bets, Removing Bad Apples. Brookings Institution, 2006.
  • Op-Eds
    • Zeckhauser, Richard. "Good Programs vs. Bad Apples." Boston Globe, March 26, 2007.
  • Research Papers/Reports
    • Bobtcheff, Catherine, Christian Gollier, and Richard Zeckhauser. "Resource Allocation When Projects Have Ranges of Increasing Returns." HKS Faculty Research Working Paper Series RWP08-024, April 2008.
    • Luttmer, Erzo F.P., and Richard Zeckhauser. "Schedule Selection by Agents: from Price Plans to Tax Tables." NBER and HKS Faculty Research Working Paper Series RWP08-008, February 2008.
    • Frank, Richard G., and Richard Zeckhauser. "Custom Made Versus Ready to Wear Treatments; Behavioral Propensities in Physician's Choices." NBER Working Papers w13445, September 2007.