Robert Shimer

(Check out my new look here)


Research:

My research is on labor markets and macroeconomics.  Most of it has focused on search frictions but recently I have become interested in mismatch between workers’ human capital and geographic location and the skill requirements and location of available jobs.

I have links to my recent working papers . These address questions such as:

·         Why do unemployed workers and job vacancies coexist?

·         Why does the unemployment rate vary over time and across countries?

·         Is this variation driven by variation in unemployment duration or unemployment incidence?

·         What determines the duration of unemployment spells?

·         What determines how frequently employed workers switch jobs?

·         Is there a role of unemployment insurance policy?

·         If so, should unemployment benefits decline with unemployment duration?

I also have links to my published papers in the same location.

 

I have a page that contains some of the data that I have constructed and used in recent papers.

You can download my curriculum vitae as an Adobe Acrobat (.pdf) file.


Teaching:

I taught two classes in the spring quarter of 2006:

·         Economics 332:  Theory of Income III (Graduate core course).

·         Economics 377:  Labor Markets and Macroeconomics (Graduate field course).

Course materials are available on chalk.

 

I will teach two classes in the spring quarter of 2007

·         Economics 332:  Theory of Income III (Graduate core course).

·         Economics 241:  Topics in Labor and Macroeconomics (Advanced undergraduate course).  This course will study issues in labor and macroeconomics including human capital accumulation, unemployment, job search, labor turnover, and career dynamics. It will use dynamic methods including difference and differential equations and discrete and continuous time optimization throughout. The course is targeted towards students with a strong mathemetical background who are considering graduate-level studies in economics.

 


Professional:

I am an editor of the Journal of Political Economy.

I am co-chair of the NBER Economic Fluctuations and Growth group “Macro Perspectives” workshop with Richard Rogerson and Randall Wright.

 


Contact Information:

I am a Professor of Economics at the University of Chicago and a Research Associate in the National Bureau of Economic Research (NBER) Economic Fluctuations and Growth program.

 

Mailing Address

University of Chicago

Department of Economics

1126 East 59th Street

Chicago, IL 60637

 

email: shimer@uchicago.edu

Phone: (773) 702-9015

Fax: (773) 702-8490


(revised July 23, 2006)