Lise Vesterlund

Lise Vesterlund is the Andrew W. Mellon Professor of Economics at the University of Pittsburgh’s Kenneth P. Dietrich School of Arts and Sciences. She holds a B.A. from the University of Copenhagen and M.A./Ph.D. from the University of Wisconsin. Her research focuses on behavioral and experimental economics, particularly gender disparities in labor markets and charitable giving. Co-author of The No Club: Putting a Stop to Women's Dead-End Work, she directs the Behavioral Economics Design Initiative (BEDI) and Pittsburgh Experimental Economics Laboratory (PEEL). Her work highlights systemic gender differences in task acceptance, negotiation, and competition, advocating for equitable work distribution.

Key areas include analyzing ‘non-promotable tasks’—undervalued roles disproportionately assigned to women—and proposing organizational solutions. Media features in New York Times, Harvard Business Review, and others underscore her influence. She frequently speaks at global events, including Harvard, Stanford, and the World Economic Forum. Despite accolades, she emphasizes collective organizational changes over individual fixes to achieve gender equity.

Her labs pioneer experimental methods to study human behavior, while her teaching spans undergraduate and graduate levels. Collaborations with institutions like the National Bureau of Economic Research and editorial roles amplify her impact. Current research explores experimenter demand effects and gender differences in negotiation strategies.