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Douglass North
Economist

Douglass North

Famoose for

Explaining economic history through institutions and incentives.

Institutional economics

Born
5 November 1920
Birthplace
Cambridge
Died
23 November 2015

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Douglass North

American economic historian who shared the 1993 economics Nobel memorial prize with Robert Fogel.

Early life

Education and sea service

Studied at Berkeley, served in the Merchant Marine during the war and completed an economics doctorate in 1952.

Career

  1. 1951–1983

    Washington

    Taught economics at the University of Washington.

  2. 1960

    Journal leadership

    Became co-editor of the Journal of Economic History.

  3. 1993

    Nobel Prize

    Recognised for renewing economic-history research.

Selected work

Institutional economics

Examined how rules and organisations shape incentives and economic change.

Beyond work

Photography and family

Considered a photographic career before choosing economics. Had three sons with Lois Heister and later married Elisabeth Case.

Sources & photo creditBiography and career ↗Biographical references ↗

Original photograph. Cropped and displayed in monochrome.

Photo: UNU-WIDER. CC BY 2.0 · Original image. Cropped and displayed in monochrome.