Economics for the Common Good: The Work of Christian Economists
The Association of Christian Economists
Co-sponsored by the Hope College Department of Economics & Business
July 20th to July 22nd, 2023
Hope College, Holland, Michigan
Speakers should plan to present their research for 20 minutes, reserving 10 minutes or more for questions and discussion.
Thursday, July 20th
| 3:00 PM | Registration Opens | Haworth Conference Center 134 |
| 4:45 PM | Welcome Reception | Haworth Conference Center 134 |
| 5:45 PM | Dinner | Haworth Conference Center 134 |
| 6:30 to 8:00 PM | ||
| Plenary Address | Rehumanizing Health Economics: Questions in Need of Attention | Haworth Conference Center 134 |
| Sarah Hamersma, Syracuse University |
Friday, July 21st
| 8:00 AM | Light Breakfast | Martha Miller Center Rotunda |
| 8:30 to 10:00 AM | ||
| Session 1A | Why Christian Economists Should Celebrate the Tercentenary of Adam Smith | Martha Miller Center 158 |
| Session Chair: Edd Noell, Westmont College | ||
| “Just Liberty,” Poverty and Inequality: How Christian Economists Might Evaluate Adam Smith’s Advocacy for the Economically Disadvantaged | ||
| Edd Noell, Westmont College | ||
| What Should Christian Economists Think about Adam Smith? | ||
| Jeffrey Young, Gordon College | ||
| Spectatorship and Subsidiarity: Revisiting Smith’s Criticism of Joint-Stock Companies | ||
| Kacey Reeves West, George Mason University | ||
| Session 1B | Faith and Ethics in the Economics Classroom | Martha Miller Center 159 |
| Session Chair: Michael Anderson, Washington and Lee University | ||
| Panel Discussion Featuring: | ||
| Sarah Estelle, Hope College | ||
| Jeremy Cook, Wheaton College | ||
| Todd Steen, Hope College | ||
| 10:00 to 10:15 AM | Coffee | Martha Miller Center Rotunda |
| 10:15 to 11:45 AM | Concurrent Sessions | |
| Session 2A | Development Economics | Martha Miller Center 158 |
| Session Chair: Paul Glewwe, University of Minnesota | ||
| How Important are Indivisibilities for Development? Experimental Evidence from Uganda. | ||
| Joseph Kaboski, University of Notre Dame | ||
| Site Selection and External Validity in Observational and Experimental Settings: How a “risky” RCT may underperform OLS | ||
| Chris Ahlin, Michigan State University | ||
| Can Teaching Be Taught? Improving Teachers’ Pedagogical Skills at Scale in Rural Peru | ||
| Paul Glewwe, University of Minnesota | ||
| Session 2B | Christian Principles in Economic Life | Martha Miller Center 159 |
| Session Chair: Dylan Pahman, The Acton Institute and St. Mary’s University | ||
| Christian Stewardship in the World of ESG | ||
| Lance Wescher, Covenant College | ||
| Solzhenitsyn, Hayek, and Social Justice: A Meeting of Minds in Subsidiarity? | ||
| Russell Dabbs, Lubbock Christian University | ||
| Preferences for Self-Sacrificing Love: Christian Ideal or Oxymoron? | ||
| Kristen Cooper, Gordon College | ||
| 12:00 PM | Lunch | Haworth Conference Center 136/144 |
| 12:30 to 2:00 PM | ||
| Plenary Address | Universal Love, Local Loves, and Normative Economics | Haworth Conference Center 136/144 |
| Andrew Yuengert, Pepperdine University (Paper Draft) | ||
| 2:15 to 3:45 PM | ||
| Session 3A | Institutions, Culture, and Economic Outcomes | Martha Miller Center 158 |
| Session Chair: David Phillips, University of Notre Dame | ||
| The Gravity of Homicide: Interpersonal Violence and International Trade | ||
| Michael Anderson, Washington and Lee University | ||
| Corruption and Reforms: A Dynamic Panel Data Study | ||
| Jeffry Jacob, Bethel University | ||
| Institutions and the Ordering of Society for the Common Good: An Economic Historical Perspective on Today’s Political Challenges | ||
| Douglas Puffert, LCC International University | ||
| Session 3B | Christian Thinking About Economics | Martha Miller Center 159 |
| Session Chair: Judy Dean, Brandeis University | ||
| The Beginning and End of Neoclassical Economic Growth | ||
| Rob Tatum, University of North Carolina at Asheville | ||
| Morals Over Money: Arguing for a More Ethical Economy | ||
| Timothy Greene, University of North Carolina at Asheville | ||
| Common Good Through the Lens of Catholic Social Teaching: A Case Study for Principles of Macroeconomics | ||
| Monica Hartmann, University of St. Thomas | ||
| 4:00 to 5:30 PM | Break | |
| 5:30 PM | Dinner | Haworth Conference Center 136/144 |
| 6:15 to 7:45 PM | ||
| Plenary Address | The Bible and Economics: A Reception History Approach | Haworth Conference Center 136/144 |
| Paul Oslington, Alphacrucis University College |
Saturday, July 22nd
| 8:00 AM | Light Breakfast | Martha Miller Center Rotunda |
| 8:30 to 10:00 AM | ||
| Session 4 | Orthodox Social Thought | Martha Miller Center Fried Hemenway Auditorium |
| Session Chair: Kristen Cooper, Gordon College | ||
| Usury and the Orthodox East: What We Can Learn from Debates in Western Christendom from Late Medieval and Early Modern Eras | ||
| James Caton, North Dakota State University | ||
| Consumerism, Consumption, and Human Freedom: Addressing the Shortcomings of Recent Magisterial Orthodox Christian Social Teachings on Economics | ||
| Gregory Jensen, St. Sophia Ukrainian Orthodox Theological Seminary | ||
| The Social Dynamics of Asceticism and the Ascetic Dynamics of Society: Kenneth Boulding as Dialogue Partner for (Orthodox) Christian Social Thought. | ||
| Dylan Pahman, The Acton Institute and St. Mary’s University | ||
| 10:00 to 10:15 AM | Coffee | Martha Miller Center Rotunda |
| 10:15 to 11:45 AM | ||
| Session 5 | Applied Microeconomics | Martha Miller Center Fried Hemenway Auditorium |
| Session Chair: Ngina Chiteji, New York University | ||
| Do homelessness prevention programs prevent homelessness? Evidence from a randomized controlled trial | ||
| David Phillips, University of Notre Dame | ||
| The Topography of Regulatory Costs: The Shadow Cost-Gradient of Parking Standards | ||
| Bowman Cutter, Pomona College | ||
| Resettlement Agency Resource Strain and Refugee Outcomes: Evidence from Catholic Sex Abuse Scandals | ||
| Neil Silveus, Hope College | ||
| 12:00 PM | Lunch | Haworth Conference Center 104 |
| 12:30 to 2:00 PM | ||
| Plenary Address | The Economics of Financing Congregations & Faith-Based Charities | Haworth Conference Center 104 |
| Daniel Hungerman, University of Notre Dame |