Eli Berman

Eli Berman is a Professor in the Department of Economics at the University of California, San Diego (UCSD), and also affiliated with the School of Global Policy and Strategy. He serves as Research Director for International Security Studies at the University of California Institute on Global Conflict and Cooperation (IGCC), where he leads the Empirical Studies of Conflict Project. He is a Research Associate at the National Bureau of Economic Research and co-director of the Economics of National Security group, as well as co-director of the Policy Design and Evaluation Lab at UCSD.

Research Interests: His work spans the economics of conflict, terrorism, insurgency, labor economics, economic development in conflict zones, and the economics of religion. He employs rigorous empirical methods to analyze how incentives, governance, and institutions shape behavior in high-stakes environments. His scholarship often bridges economics and political science, with a focus on data-driven policy solutions.

The most recent articles show a strong trend toward understanding strategic behavior in conflict, deterrence dynamics (especially in Gaza-Israel and great power competition), governance in fragile states, and demographic shifts linked to religion. His work consistently emphasizes empirical rigor and real-world policy relevance, particularly in counterinsurgency, development, and national security.

• Scientific Affiliations:
  • Research Director, International Security Studies, IGCC
  • Professor, Department of Economics, UCSD
  • Professor, School of Global Policy and Strategy, UCSD
  • Co-Director, Policy Design and Evaluation Lab, UCSD
  • Research Associate, National Bureau of Economic Research
  • Faculty Fellow, IZA
  • Member, Association for Analytic Learning about Islam and Muslim Societies (AALIMS)
• Scientific Awards:
  • No specific awards listed in the provided text.

Berman advises graduate students and collaborates extensively, particularly with Joseph Felter, Jacob Shapiro, and David Lake. His research has been funded by the Minerva Research Initiative and the National Science Foundation. He has led major projects on counterinsurgency, proxy warfare, and development in conflict zones, often using field experiments and large-scale data analysis. His work contributes significantly to both academic understanding and practical policymaking in national and international security.

He is actively involved in lab leadership and research groups, including the Empirical Studies of Conflict Project and the Policy Design and Evaluation Lab, which focus on generating evidence-based insights for security and development policy.