Alex Rees-Jones

Alex Rees-Jones is an Associate Professor in the Business Economics and Public Policy Department at the Wharton School, University of Pennsylvania. He is affiliated with the National Bureau of Economic Research (NBER) as a Research Associate and the Leonard Davis Institute as a Senior Fellow. His research bridges behavioral economics with public finance and market design, focusing on how psychological biases affect policy analysis and market outcomes.

• Ph.D. in Economics, Cornell University (2013)
• Postdoctoral Fellowship, NBER (2014)

His work examines public finance through the lens of imperfect tax responses and behavioral biases, and explores market design in contexts like school assignment and residency matching. He has contributed to journals such as the American Economic Review, Review of Economic Studies, and Management Science.

Recent publications highlight his focus on loss aversion, reference dependence, and cognitive constraints in policy evaluation. His studies often combine theoretical modeling with empirical or experimental approaches.

Scientific Awards and Affiliations

• Research Associate, National Bureau of Economic Research
• Senior Fellow, Leonard Davis Institute
• Board of Editors, American Economic Review
• Associate Editor, Management Science

Alex teaches undergraduate and MBA courses on Public Finance and Policy, as well as Ph.D.-level courses on public economics and behavioral economics applications.