George Akerlof

George Akerlof
Akerlof in 2007
Born
George Arthur Akerlof

(1940-06-17) June 17, 1940
Spouses
  • Kay Leong
    (m. 1974; div. 1977)
  • (m. 1978)
Children1
RelativesCarl W. Akerlof (brother)
Academic background
EducationYale University (BA)
Massachusetts Institute of Technology (PhD)
ThesisWages and capital (1966)
Doctoral advisorRobert Solow
InfluencesJohn Maynard Keynes
Academic work
School or traditionNew Keynesian economics
InstitutionsGeorgetown University
London School of Economics
University of California, Berkeley
Doctoral studentsCharles Engel
Adriana Kugler
Notable ideasInformation asymmetry
Efficiency wages
AwardsNobel Memorial Prize in Economic Sciences (2001)
Website

George Arthur Akerlof (born June 17, 1940) is an American economist and a university professor at the McCourt School of Public Policy at Georgetown University and Koshland Professor of Economics Emeritus at the University of California, Berkeley. Akerlof was awarded the 2001 Nobel Memorial Prize in Economic Sciences, jointly with Michael Spence and Joseph Stiglitz, "for their analyses of markets with asymmetric information." He is the husband of former United States Secretary of the Treasury Janet Yellen.