Art Carden

Art Carden is the Margaret Gage Bush Distinguished Professor of Economics at Samford University’s Brock School of Business in Birmingham, Alabama. Beyond his primary appointment he serves as senior fellow with the American Institute for Economic Research and the Fraser Institute, research fellow with the Independent Institute, senior fellow with the Beacon Center of Tennessee, and senior research fellow with the Institute for Faith, Work, and Economics. He is also co-editor of the Southern Economic Journal.

Education

• Ph.D. in Economics, Washington University in St. Louis
• A.M. in Economics, Washington University in St. Louis
• M.A. in Economics, University of Alabama
• B.S. in Economics, University of Alabama
• Graduate Certificate in New Institutional Social Sciences, Washington University in St. Louis

Research Interests

Carden’s research integrates economic history, history of economic thought, and applied microeconomics to explore how markets, institutions, and ideas shape human flourishing. He has written extensively on the transformative role of mass-market retail innovations—such as Walmart and Sam’s Club—in expanding consumer choice and lowering prices. A second strand examines libertarian and classical liberal thinkers (notably James M. Buchanan, Gordon Tullock, W.H. Hutt, and Thomas Sowell), reassessing their contributions to debates on coercion, socialism, and public policy. His work also delves into economic theology, probing how religious world-views intersect with market processes. Across these domains he employs public choice analysis to illuminate the incentives of voters, bureaucrats, and entrepreneurs.

Publication Trends

Between 2020 and 2025 Carden produced a high-velocity stream of peer-reviewed articles, book reviews, and essays. Recurrent themes include the bourgeois deal—the idea that leaving individuals free to trade generates broad prosperity—and the intellectual biography of under-appreciated classical liberal scholars. Recent pieces also tackle COVID-19 policy responses, the economics of sports subsidies, and the philosophical foundations of libertarianism, demonstrating both methodological breadth and policy relevance.

Books & Awards

• Co-author with Deirdre McCloskey, Leave Me Alone and I’ll Make You Rich: How the Bourgeois Deal Enriched the World (University of Chicago Press, 2020)

Outreach & Media

Carden is a regular contributor to Forbes.com, and his popular articles have appeared in USA Today, Productive!, Black Belt, and numerous other outlets, translating rigorous economic insight for a general audience.

Personal

He resides in Birmingham, Alabama, with his wife and three children.