MSCA-PF: Joint application at the University of Granada. Department of Applied Economics

Professor Alberto Ruiz Villaverde, from the Department of Applied Economics at the University of Granada, welcomes postdoctoral candidates interested in applying for a Marie Skłodowska-Curie Postdoctoral Fellowship (MSCA-PF) in 2023 at this University. Please note that applicants must comply with the Mobility Rule (for more information about the 2023 call, please consult:(http://sl.ugr.es/0d7F).

Brief description of the institution:

The University of Granada (UGR) was founded in 1531 and is one of the largest and most important universities in Spain. With over 51,000 undergraduate and postgraduate students and almost 3,000 members of staff, the UGR offers over 90 undergraduate degrees, 160 master’s degrees (8 of which are international double degrees) and 28 doctoral programmes via its 124 departments and nearly 50 centers. Accordingly, the UGR offers one of the most extensive and diverse ranges of higher education programmes in Spain.

The UGR has been awarded with the "Human Resources Excellence in Research (HRS4R)", which reflects the institution’s commitment to continuously improving its human resource policies in line with the European Charter for Researchers and the Code of Conduct for the Recruitment of Researchers. The UGR is also internationally renowned for its excellence in diverse research fields and ranked among the top Spanish universities in a variety of ranking criteria, such as national R&D projects, fellowships awarded, publications, and international funding.

The UGR is one of the few Spanish Universities listed in the Shanghai Top 500 ranking - Academic Ranking of World Universities (ARWU). The 2022 edition of the ARWU places the UGR in 201-300th position in the world and as the 2-5 highest ranked universities in Spain (http://sl.ugr.es/0d7D), reaffirming its position as an institution at the forefront of national and international research. The UGR stands out in the specialties of Library & Information Science (position 38); Food Science & Technology (30) and Hospitality & Tourism Management (51-75), according to the latest edition of this prestigious ranking by specialties (http://sl.ugr.es/0bSp). A little lower in the ranking, the UGR also stands out in Mathematics (76-100).

Additionally, the UGR has 9 researchers who are at the top of the Highly Cited Researchers (HCR) list (http://sl.ugr.es/0d7E), most of these related to the area of Computer Science. It is also well recognized for its web presence (http://sl.ugr.es/0a6i), being positioned at 42th place in the top 200 Universities in Europe.

Internationally, the University of Granada is firmly committed to its participation in the calls of the Framework Programme of the European Union. For the duration of the last Framework Programme, Horizon 2020, the UGR obtained a total 120 projects with a total funding of around 29,4 million euros.  For the current Framework Programme, Horizon Europe, the UGR has obtained 38 projects, so far, with total funding around 11 € million.

Brief description of the Centre/Research Group:

The Department of Applied Economics fosters topics related to the application of economic theory and econometrics in specific settings. As one of the two sets of fields of economics (the other set being the core), it is typically characterized by the application of the core, i.e. economic theory and econometrics, to address practical issues in a range of fields including demographic economics, labor economics, business economics, industrial organization, agricultural economics, development economics, education
economics, engineering economics, financial economics, health economics, monetary economics, public economics, and economic history.

Project description:

There is an open debate about whether teaching standard economics fosters more individualistic, competitive, and selfish behaviour in students. Nowadays, the study of
economics is configured largely as an analysis of human behaviour, individual decisions, and their interactions. In order to perform the analytical construction of the economic theory, a pattern of behaviour to individuals has to be assumed (classified as homo economicus). In doing so, individuals are rational and motivated exclusively to satisfy their own self-interest. Additionally, when self-interested individuals try to optimise their decisions in competitive markets, the best solution (i.e. the best resource allocation in a society) is reached. Hence, it seems very logical to establish a debate as to whether studying these (standard) economic models (oriented to pro-competitive markets) encourages economic students to behave in that particular manner.

Three empirical methods have been used in order to test whether economic students develop a less pro-social behaviour: (i) questionnaires which ask about students’ attitudes; (ii) laboratory experiments; and (iii) field or natural experiments (i.e. look at real life). The results of these studies are inconclusive. Some of them obtained evidence that
economics students behave in a less pro-social manner, primarily due to an indoctrination effect derived from the study of standard economics. Other studies found no differences in behaviour between economics students and cohorts from other areas. Finally, a third type of studies found differences in behaviour among economics students; but these differences are due to a self- selection effect. Individuals who are originally less pro-social choose to study economics or business administration. Therefore, more research is need on this topic.

Research Area:

☒  Economic Sciences (ECO)

For a correct evaluation of your candidature, please send the documents below to Professor Alberto Ruiz Villaverde, email: albertorv@ugr.es

• CV
• Letter of recommendation (optional)