Directory

Directory

James West

W.H. Smith Professor of Economics - Economics

Contact Information

Email:  J_West@baylor.edu
Homepage:  http://www.baylor.edu/j_west
Fax:  (254) 710-6142
Mailing Address:  One Bear Place #98003
Waco, TX  76706
Office Location:  Paul L. Foster Campus for Business and Innovation 320.05

Office Hours

FALL 2023
TR 9:00am - 11:30am

Educational Background

  • BA - Economics, University Of Denver
  • MA - Economics, Univ Michigan Ann Arbor
  • PHD - Economics, University Of Michigan Ann Arbor

Work Experience

  • Professor and Holder of the W. H. Smith Professorship in Economics, Baylor University (August 2011 - Present)
  • Professor of Economics, US Air Force Academy (July 1, 2007 - July 1, 2011)
  • Associate Professor of Economics, US Air Force Academy (January 1, 2003 - June 30, 2007)
  • Assistant Professor of Economics, US Air Force Academy (June 30, 1997 - December 31, 2002)
  • Assistant Professor of Economics, Seattle University (August 30, 1994 - June 30, 1997)

Awards and Honors

  • The Georgescu-Roegen Prize for Best Academic Paper Published in SEJ, Southern Economic Association (November 19, 2023)
  • Robert and Robin Nitsche Outstanding Scholar, Hankamer School of Business (2013)

Professional Memberships

  • Southern Economic Association (2020 - Present)
  • Research Associate, National Bureau of Economic Research (April 2014 - Present)
  • Western Economic Association International (1997 - Present)
  • American Economics Association (1994 - Present)

Publications

Basic or Discovery Scholarship

"Dishonest Behavior: Sin Big or Go Home," Economics Letters, Vol. 186, No. 108779, (January 2020) (coauthors: Jason Aimone, Brittany Ward).

"The Impact of College Diversity on Behavior Toward Minorities," American Economic Journal: Economic Policy, (November 2019) (coauthors: Scott E Carrell, Mark Hoekstra).

"The Impact of Intergroup Contact on Racial Attitudes and Revealed Preferences," No. w20940, (February 2015) (coauthors: Scott E Carrell, Mark Hoekstra).

"From Natural Variation to Optimal Policy? The Importance of Endogenous Peer Group Formation," Econometrica, Vol. 81, No. 3, (May 2013), pp. 855-882 (coauthors: Daron Acemoglu, Scott E Carrell, Bruce I Sacerdote).

"A's from Zzzz's? The Causal Effect of School Start Time on the Academic Achievement of Adolescents," American Economic Journal: Economic Policy, Vol. 3, No. 3, (August 2011), pp. 62-81 (coauthors: Scott E Carrell, Teny Maghakian).

"Is Poor Fitness Contagious? Evidence from Randomly Assigned Friends," Journal of Public Economics, Vol. 95, No. 7-8, (August 2011), pp. 657-663 (coauthors: Scott E Carrell, Mark Hoekstra).

"Does Drinking Impair College Performance? Evidence from a Regression Discontinuity Approach," Journal of Public Economics, Vol. 95, No. 1-2, (January 2011), pp. 54-62 (coauthors: Scott E Carrell, Mark Hoekstra).

"Sex and Science: How Professor Gender Perpetuates the Gender Gap," Quarterly Journal of Economics, Vol. 125, No. 3, (August 2010), pp. 1101-1144 (coauthors: Scott E Carrell, Marianne E Page).

"Does Professor Quality Matter? Evidence from Random Assignment of Students to Professors," Journal of Political Economy, (June 2010) (coauthors: Scott E Carrell).

"Does Your Cohort Matter? Measuring Peer Effects in College Achievement," Journal of Labor Economics, Vol. 27, No. 3, (July 2009), pp. 439-464 (coauthors: Scott E Carrell, Richard L Fullerton).

"Peer Effects in Academic Cheating," Journal of Human Resources, Vol. 43, No. 1, (Winter 2008), pp. 173-207 (coauthors: Scott E Carrell, Frederick Malmstrom).

"A Sequential Equilibrium for the Army's Targeted Selective Reenlistment Program," Human Resource Management, Vol. 46, No. 1, (Spring 2007), pp. 21-34 (coauthors: Scott E Carrell).

"Optimal Compensating Wages for Military Personnel," Journal of Policy Analysis and Management, Vol. 24, No. 4, (Fall 2005), pp. 803-822 (coauthors: Scott E Carrell).

"Class Action Extraction?," Public Choice, Vol. 116, No. 1-2, (January 2003), pp. 91-108 (coauthors: Jeffrey Haymond).

"The Evolution of Fuzzy Rules as Strategies in Two-Player Games," Southern Economic Journal, Vol. 69, No. 3, (January 2003), pp. 705-717 (coauthors: Bruce G Linster).

Bradley, S. W., Garven, J. R., Law, W. W., & West, J. E. (2018). The Impact of Chief Diversity Officers on Diverse Faculty Hiring (No. w24969). National Bureau of Economic Research.

Presentations and Proceedings

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