Annual Research Night: What Undermines Democracy

Nobel laureate James A. Robinson delivered a thought-provoking keynote on the ideational foundations of democracy. Drawing on his recent work with Daron Acemoglu, Robinson argued that democracy’s strength – and its current crisis – cannot be understood purely in economic terms. At the heart of today’s democratic backsliding, he said, lies a normative crisis: the weakening of the ideas and justifications that once underpinned democratic institutions. “Democracy is not only about material incentives,” he noted. “It is also a normative project, an idea that must be renewed.”

Watch Prof. Robinson’s inspiring keynote on democracy and ideas on YouTube.

Research Slam

Following the keynote, three professors from the Department of Economics showcased the breadth and societal relevance of their research in a Research Slam.

Amanda Dahlstrand explored how mismatches between CEOs and their firms can reduce productivity – highlighting how leadership quality matters for economic growth, particularly in developing countries.
Ana Costa-Ramón presented results from a large-scale field experiment showing how greater financial awareness among mothers can reduce Switzerland’s persistent “child penalty” and help close the gender pension gap.
Ronak Jain examined the global impact of mobile internet on students’ learning and well-being, revealing how constant digital connectivity has eroded academic performance and social belonging across 82 countries.

Media coverage

Nobel laureate James A. Robinson challenges the doomsday talk about the US – and explains why he believes the country will succeed in renewing itself.

NZZ article

«The crisis of democracy is, above all, a crisis of ideas.»

Nobel laureate Prof. James Robinson

Impressions

About the speaker

James Robinson
Nobel laureate Prof. James Robinson is the Institute Director of The Pearson Institute and the Reverend Dr. Richard L. Pearson Professor and University Professor at the University of Chicago. He is an economist and political scientist whose influential research examines the interplay between political power, institutions, and prosperity. Robinson’s work explores the historical and contemporary causes of political and economic divergence, combining the quantitative methods of economics with the qualitative approaches of other social sciences.