Robin Grier

Robin Grier is a Professor of Economics at Texas Tech University with joint appointments in the Free Market Institute and the Gordon W. Davis College of Agricultural Sciences & Natural Resources. Her research bridges historical institutional analysis with modern development economics, focusing on Latin America and Mexico.

• Education: PhD in Economics from George Mason University (1995)

Grier’s work integrates theories from Douglass North, Mancur Olson, and Max Weber to examine how pre-industrial institutions shape long-term development trajectories. Her coauthored book The Long Process of Development (2014) analyzes centuries-long state-building in England, Spain, and their colonies.

She teaches undergraduate courses on the U.S.-Mexico Border Economy and graduate-level Applied Macroeconomic Analysis. Her research has been published in top journals like Journal of Development Economics and Public Choice.

• Current Research Interests: Evolution of markets and states, political business cycles in developing economies, inflation uncertainty and growth