معرفی
Yasushi Asako is Associate Professor in the Faculty of Political Science and Economics at Waseda University, Tokyo, specializing in formal political theory and applied game-theoretic analyses of elections, legislatures, and macroeconomic policy. Previously he served as Economist at the Bank of Japan’s Institute for Monetary and Economic Studies (2009-2012).
Education:
- Ph.D. in Economics, University of Wisconsin-Madison (2009)
- M.S. in Economics, Hitotsubashi University (2003)
- B.A. in Economics (summa cum laude), Keio University (2001)
Research Interests:
Asako builds mathematical models of electoral competition, legislative bargaining, political dynasties, term limits, and asset-price bubbles and tests them with laboratory experiments as well as archival data from Japan and the United States. His work highlights how institutional rules—such as term limits, parliamentary confidence procedures, or information structures in financial markets—alter the strategic behaviour of politicians, voters, and traders.
Publication Trends:
Across 15 major articles since 2011, Asako consistently merges rigorous game-theoretic modelling with original empirical or experimental evidence. Themes include the causes and consequences of ambiguous campaign promises, the role of seniority and dynasty in budget allocation, the entry of third-party candidates during recessions, and the experimental conditions that prolong or prick asset bubbles.
Grants & Projects:
- JSPS Grant-in-Aid for Scientific Research on “Political Polarization” (2020-2024)
- JSPS Grant on “Political Economy of Parliamentary Cabinet System” (2020-2024)
- JSPS Grant on “Political Agency Problems under Parliamentary Government” (2017-2021)
- JSPS Grant on “Effect of Campaign Promises in Political Competition” (2014-2017)
Teaching & Supervision:
At Waseda he leads graduate seminars on political economy, public choice, and game theory and supervises master’s and doctoral dissertations that apply formal modelling to Japanese and comparative politics.
Professional Memberships:
Japanese Political Science Association, Japanese Economic Association, Japanese Public Choice Society.
