Ernst Fehr

Ernst Fehr is a distinguished Professor of Economics and Director of the UBS Center for Economics in Society at the University of Zurich. He also holds positions as a Global Distinguished Professor at New York University (2011–2020) and was affiliated with MIT's Department of Economics (2003–2011). His research bridges economics, psychology, neuroscience, and evolutionary biology, focusing on experimental and behavioral economics, particularly human altruism, social norms, and neuroeconomic foundations of decision-making.

Education: Earned his doctorate and habilitation in Economics from the University of Vienna, with postgraduate studies at the Institute for Advanced Studies in Vienna. Professional roles include Director of the Institute for Empirical Research in Economics (1999–2010) and Chairman of the Department of Economics at the University of Zurich (2010–2015).

Research interests emphasize experimental methods to study social preferences, cooperation, incentives, and the neurobiological basis of economic behavior. Notable contributions include work on oxytocin's role in trust (Nature, 2005), the evolutionary origins of altruism, and the impact of bounded rationality on strategic interactions.

Publications span over 300 articles in top journals like Nature, Science, and American Economic Review, with key works on fairness, punishment, and neuroeconomic mechanisms. Awards include the Marcel Benoist Prize (2008) and honorary doctorates from multiple universities.

Grants and labs: Led the Priority Research Program on Human Social Behavior (2005–2012) and founded the Laboratory for Social and Neural Systems Research. Collaborates with institutions like the Santa Fe Institute and the MacArthur Foundation.