M. Keith Chen
Professor of Economics
About
Keith Chen teaches MBA core strategy and Ph.D. behavioral economics. His research blurs traditional disciplinary boundaries in both subject and methodology, bringing unorthodox tools to bear on problems at the intersection of economics, psychology and biology. Chen’s most recent work focuses on how people’s economic choices are influenced by the structure of their language. His work has shown that how a person’s language encodes future events influences future-oriented behaviors as diverse as saving, smoking and safe sex.
Topics

10 Articles

Smartphone Records Reveal Racial Disparities in Neighborhood Policing
Police patrol Black areas more frequently than others with similar homicide rates and income levels

Why Remote Work Could Lead to Less Innovation
A new study suggests that when employees from one company run into employees from another company, creative sparks fly

The Role of Chance Encounters in Silicon Valley Innovation
Cellphone signals and patent citations approximate a theory’s long-sought paper trail

Face-to-Face Meetings, Before an Acquisition, Improve Outcomes for Buyers
Acquiring companies appear to get a better deal following frequent in-person meetings

Amid Unfounded ‘Hurricane Skepticism,’ Trump Voters Were Less Likely to Evacuate
Only after a Rush Limbaugh broadcast did evacuation rates diverge politically

Employees Work at Multiple Nursing Homes and Spread COVID-19
Smartphone GPS tracks staffers between facilities

For Racial Justice, Employees Need Paid Hours Off for Voting
Corporate America can give real support by making it easy for workers to vote, an economist says

A Tool for Uncovering Voter Suppression
Smartphone data reveals that wait times at the polls are much longer for black people

How Clinton and Trump Voters Behave in — and Spread — a Pandemic
Estimates are based on smartphone data and precinct-level 2016 vote results

Holiday Meals Shortened by Political Divide
Cell phone location data and local voting records measure discord