3 Americans win 2024 Nobel Prize in Economics

Three American scientists won the Nobel Prize in Economics this year, for their research on social institutions and prosperity.

At 11:45 a.m. on October 14 (around 4:45 p.m. Hanoi time), the Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences announced that the 2024 Nobel Prize in Economics went to three American economists: Daron Acemoglu, Simon Johnson, and James A. Robinson . They were awarded the prize for their research on how social institutions are formed and how these groups influence prosperity.

Daron Acemoglu and Simon Johnson are both currently working at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT). Meanwhile, Robinson is working at the University of Chicago (USA). All three are authors of many famous books on economics. Among them are Power and Progress and Why Nations Fail.

Three scientists won the 2024 Nobel Prize in Economics. (Photo: Dang Hieu)

Daron Acemoglu, 57, is best known for his work on political economy. Simon Johnson, 61, was the chief economist at the International Monetary Fund (IMF). James A. Robinson, 64, is a long-time researcher on economic and political development in Latin America and sub-Saharan Africa.

"Narrowing the income gap between countries is one of the biggest challenges today. The scientists have demonstrated the importance of social institutions in solving this problem," commented Jakob Svensson - Chairman of the Nobel Prize in Economics Committee.

The research of all three has shown the importance of social institutions to the prosperity of a country. Accordingly, societies with weak institutions and legal systems will find it difficult to create growth or change for the better.

The economics prize is the last prize awarded each year, after medicine, physics, chemistry, literature and peace. The Nobel Prize for this field was not part of the original prize structure in the will of Swedish scientist Alfred Nobel. This prize was added in 1968, on the occasion of the 300th anniversary of the Swedish Central Bank - Sveriges Riksbank, which also contributes funds to this prize.

The nomination, selection and awarding process for the Nobel Prize in Economics is similar to that for other fields. The names of the nominees and all other information about them are kept secret for 50 years. This year's laureate receives a medal, a diploma and 11 million Swedish kronor (more than $1 million).

The Nobel Prize in Economics has been awarded 56 times to date. The youngest winner was 46 years old and the oldest was 90. American scientists currently dominate the award.

Last year, the award went to Claudia Goldin, 78, a professor at Harvard University in the United States. She was honored for her research on women's income and contribution to the labor market. The aim was to find out how and why gender gaps in income and labor force participation occur. Goldin is the third woman to win the award in the past 56 years.

List of Nobel Prizes in Economics in the past 10 years:

Year 2023 National Book Award WinnerClaudia GoldinWomen's Earnings and Labor Market ContributionsUnited States2022Ben Bernanke, Philip Dybvig, and Douglas DiamondThe Role of Banks in the Financial Crisis.United States2021David Card, Joshua Angrist, and Guido ImbensLabor Economics and Methodology in CausalityCanada, the United States, and the Netherlands2020Paul R. Milgrom and Robert B. WilsonAuction TheoryUnited States2019

Abhijit Banerjee, Esther Duflo and Michael Kremer

Experimental approaches to global poverty reductionUS and France2018

William Nordhaus

Paul Romer

Climate economics

Endogenous growth theory

USA2017Richard H. ThalerBehavioral economicsUSA2016Oliver Hart and Bengt HolmströmContract theoryUSA and Finland2015Angus DeatonThe relationship between consumption, poverty and welfareUSA2014Jean TiroleHow large corporations and companies are managed in the marketFrance2013Eugene F. Fama, Lars Peter Hansen, Robert J. ShillerAsset price analysisUSA