Arnab Basu

Biography

Arnab Basu is a professor at the Charles H. Dyson School of Applied Economics and Marketing. His main research interests are in the areas of labor markets in development countries, the economics of eco-and social labeling, and field experiments to elicit behavioral preferences. Within labor markets, Arnab's research spans topics on the informal sector, minimum wage and enforcement, labor contracts, employment guarantee schemes, child labor, and human trafficking. He has also explored the economics of statistical discrimination regarding product quality and how it impacts comparative advantage in trade between nations, how international product market shares and adoption of eco-labels by developing countries are related, and how incomplete information on labeled products affects consumers' willingness to pay. More recently, he has undertaken field experiments among coffee farmers in Colombia and cocoa farmers in Cote d'Ivoire to study how behavioral preferences affect production decisions, household labor supply, and human capital investments. Arnab is a research fellow at the Institute of Labor Economics (IZA) in Bonn, Germany, and a fellow of the Global Labor Organization (GLO). He was awarded a research fellowship from the Alexander von Humboldt Foundation in Germany and is a recipient of the Theodore W. Schultz Young Economist Prize awarded by the International Association of Agricultural Economists (IAAE).

Selected Publications

• Basu, Arnab; Chau, Nancy H.; Soundararajan, Vidhya. "Wage fairness in a subcontracted labor market"Journal of Economic Behavior and Organization. 168 (2019): 24-42
• Bose, Pinaki; Compton, Ryan; Basu, Arnab. "Paying for Freedom: Indentured Labor and Strategic Default"Economic Modelling. 89 (2020): 502-511
• Basu, Arnab; Chau, Nancy H.; Fields, Gary; Kanbur, Ravi. "Job Creation in a Multi-Sector Labor Market Model for Developing Economies"Oxford Economic Papers. 71.1 (2019): 119-144
• Basu, Arnab; Chau, Nancy H.; Kanbur, Ravi. "Contractual Dualism, Market Power and Informality"Economic Journal. 125.589 (2015): 1534–1573
• Akee, Randall; Basu, Arnab; Bedi, Arjun; Chau, Nancy H. "Transnational Trafficking, Law Enforcement and Victim Protection: A Middleman's Perspective."Journal of Law and Economics. 57.2 (2014): 349-386
• Basu, Arnab. "Impact of Rural Employment Guarantee Schemes on Seasonal Labor Markets: Optimum Compensation and Workers' Welfare"Journal of Economic Inequality. 11.1 (2013): 1-1
• Basu, Arnab; Chau, Nancy H.; Kanbur, Ravi. "Turning a Blind Eye: Costly Enforcement, Credible Commitment and Minimum Wage Laws"Economic Journal. 120 (2010): 244-269
• Basu, Arnab; Hicks, Robert. "Label Performance and the Willingness to Pay for Fair Trade Coffee: A Cross-National Perspective"International Journal of Consumer Studies. 32 (2008): 270-278
• Basu, Arnab; Qaim, Matin. "On the Adoption of Genetically Modified Seeds in Developing Countries and the Optimal Types of Government Intervention"American Journal of Agricultural Economics. 89.3 (2007): 784-804
• Basu, Arnab; Chau, Nancy. "Exploitation of Child Labor and the Dynamics of Debt Bondage"Journal of Economic Growth. 9.2 (2004): 209-238

Awards and Honors

• Research Award (2007) Alexander von Humboldt Foundation
• TransCoop Grant (2011) Alexander von Humboldt Foundation
• Plumeri Award for Faculty Excellence (2013) College of William and Mary

Recent Courses

• AEM 6940 - Graduate Special Topics in Applied Economics and Management
• AEM 2300/ECON 2300 - International Trade and Finance
• AEM 1300 - Introduction to Macroeconomic Theory and Policy

Academic Degrees

• PhD Johns Hopkins University, 1997
• MA Delhi School of Economics, University of Delhi, 1990
• BS St. Xavier's College, University of Calcutta, 1988