Research

The Department has internationally competitive research strengths in international economics, economic history and history of economic thought, and in the areas of competition, regulation and productivity.

The Institute for International Integration Studies (IIIS) which was the outcome of a successful College successful bid under the Programme for Research in Third Level Institutions (PRTLI) is a major resource for staff members working in areas of international economics and globalization. In addition, the Policy Institute which is a part of the School of Social Sciences and Philosophy provides an interface with the policy community for policy-relevant work undertaken by members of the Department. The Department runs a weekly series of brown bag seminars and also participates with the other Dublin universities in the weekly seminar series organized by the Dublin Economics Workshop.

The Department has a strong record in international economics. This is a core area for the IIIS. Researchers have been successful in attracting financial support from IRCHSS, the EU Framework Programme, European Science Foundation, World Bank, IMF, Irish Aid, Forfás and the National Competitiveness Council.100

 
Professor of International Macroeconomics Philip Lane has a high international profile in research on the macroeconomics of globalisation. According to one survey, TCD is ranked fourth in Europe in terms of research output in the International Macroeconomics field.

A second area in international economics where the Department has achieved international recognition is in the economic history of globalisation, led by Professor Kevin O’Rourke. Social science history is naturally inter-disciplinary and there are close links with other disciplines in the School of Social Sciences and Philosophy as well as the School of Histories and Humanities. Professor Antoin Murphy has an active interest in the history of economic thought.

A third area of strength is in the empirical analysis of the impact of trade and foreign investment on productivity – this area has produced a large number of successful doctoral dissertations in recent years by a former member of the Department, now Director of the ESRI, Professor Frances Ruane.

A fourth strength is in applied trade policy. Building on the expertise in food and agricultural policy in the Department, this work focuses on international trade policy regulation through the WTO in assisting largely agrarian developing countries to meet the challenges of poverty reduction. This development focus has been strengthened by the appointment, with funding from Irish Aid, of a lecturer in development studies in the Department for a four-year period. Under the leadership of Professor John O’Hagan, a recognised authority in the area of cultural economics, this research strand will also tackle the role of regulation in supporting cultural diversity in a globalising world in the future.

Finally, the Department of Economics has had a tradition of strength in competition, regulation and productivity and a significant cluster of the Department’s economists work in these areas.

For more detailed information on  research work see the home pages of individual staff members.

 

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