Nava Ashraf

Nava Ashraf is Professor of Economics at the London School of Economics and Political Science, publishing in top journals including the American Economic Review, Journal of Political Economy, Quarterly Journal of Economics, and Journal of Economic Perspectives.

She earned her PhD in Economics from Harvard University (2005) and BA in Economics and International Relations from Stanford University.

Her research spans Development Economics, Labour Economics, and Behavioural Economics, with focus on work motivation, cognitive barriers in economic opportunity recognition, interpersonal dynamics in investment decisions, and incentive structures for mission-driven organizations. She frequently employs field experiments to investigate psychological and social factors affecting economic behavior in vulnerable populations.

Recent publications reveal a strong interdisciplinary trend combining experimental methods with developmental insights. Key themes include the role of meaning in workplace performance, memory mechanisms affecting opportunity perception among the economically disadvantaged, and optimal incentive design for pro-social tasks. This work bridges economics with psychology to address real-world poverty and inequality challenges.