Research Statement:
My research can be broadly organized into three intertwined research programs (this section is a work in progress):
In Economics, my work has primarily focused on behavioral and experimental economics—particularly motivated beliefs and memory—but has increasingly extended beyond the laboratory to questions in political economy. More recently, how individuals’ mental models of the world—or ‘narratives’—shape behavior and evolve over time. Empirically, my recent work examines populism, radicalization, and conspiratorial thinking - ocasionally adopting a historical perspective.
In Philosophy, my main interests lie in epistemology and political philosophy. For instance, my work emphasizes understanding how knowledge is produced and communicated, and how specific knowledge structures also represent political choices. More recently, I have worked on the philosophy of AI.
Within Cognitive science, I am particularly interested in how mental models—and concepts such as causality, complexity, and intrinsic motivation—develop from a cognitive point of view and how they affect behavior.
In practice, my research primarily engages with behavioral economics and political economy, while also drawing on economic history and philosophy. I view these interests as complementary, as they all reflect— from the micro- to the macro-scale — an interest in human behavior and human nature.
