Diego Comin is a Professor of Economics at Dartmouth College. He is also Research Fellow at the Center for Economic Policy Research and Faculty Research Fellow in the National Bureau of Economic Research’s Economic Fluctuations and Growth Program. Comin is a fellow for the Institute of New Economic Thinking (INET). Professor Comin has published multiple articles in top economic journals on the topics of business cycles, technology diffusion, economic growth and firm volatility.  Comin advised during two years the Prime Minister of Malaysia on its development strategies and led the creation of the Malaysian Public-Private Research Network (PPRN). Comin has developed macroeconomic models of technology and business cycles for the design of policies at the European Central Bank (ECB), the European Commission (EU).

Professor Comin received his PhD in Economics from Harvard University in 2000. Since then, he has been Assistant Professor of Economics at New York University and Associate Professor of Business Administration at the Harvard Business School (HBS) where he taught both in the MBA and in executive programs. He has also designed and led immersion programs in Peru and Malaysia for which he received the Apgar Prize for Innovation in Teaching from the HBS Dean.

By this expert

Endogenous Technology Adoption and R&D as Sources of Business Cycle Persistence

Paper Conference paper | | Dec 2017

We examine the hypothesis that the slowdown in productivity following the Great Recession was in significant part an endogenous response to the contraction in demand that induced the downturn.

Who should do R and who should do D?

Paper Conference paper | | Apr 2014

This article studies the reasons for the under-investment in research vs. development in the decentralized equilibrium and argues that this bias provides a micro-foundation for the government direct involvement in conducting applied research rather than just financing it.

From Green Users to Green Voters

Paper Grantee paper | | Jun 2013

We estimate the effect of the diffusion of photovoltaic (PV) systems on the fraction of votes obtained by the German Green Party.

Technology Diffusion: Measurement, Causes and Consequences

Paper Grantee paper | | Apr 2013

This chapter discusses different approaches pursued to explore three broad questions related to technology diffusion: what general patterns characterize the diffusion of technologies, and how have they changed over time; what are the key drivers of technology, and what are the macroeconomic consequences of technology.

Featuring this expert

Diego Comin’s INET funded research is featured in Dartmouth News

News Mar 26, 2021

“As consumers become richer, they spend more on services such as health and education, the demand for which is much more income elastic, and less on agriculture and manufactured goods, according to a recent study, co-led by Diego Comin, a professor of economics. The results are published in Econometrica. Until now, productivity has often been considered at least as important, if not more, than preferences, in shaping the sectoral composition of the economy. Politicians and business leaders often make claims about why certain sectors in the economy are shrinking, such as the decline in U.S. manufacturing is due to robotics or trade with China. Such assessments are flawed, as the sectoral composition of the economy is mostly driven by preferences and not by productivity, according to the study, which models long-run structural change in the economy.” — Amy Olsen, Darmouth News

Comin's INET funded research into the drivers of technology adoption and its consequences is discussed in the Conversation

News Jan 25, 2021

“The gap between the “technology haves and have nots” in the corporate world is widening. A recent study also found that this gap is widening between rich countries and poor countries. When few companies have access to 3D printers, robots, or cutting-edge AI, there are fewer actors to leverage such technologies to the point at which productivity will increase across the board.” — Wim Naudé, The Conversation

Is Slow Growth the “New Normal”?

If So, What Are the Policy Solutions?

Event Conference | Hosted by Secular Stagnation | Dec 15, 2017

Distinguished Scholars Including Larry Summers and Adair Turner Present Evidence of the Trend and Policy Solutions

Why New Technologies Do Not Make Poor Countries Rich

Video | Feb 7, 2012

Over the past two hundred years, poor countries have become faster at adopting the technologies of rich countries. So why is it, the economist asks, that poor countries have remained poor, by and large?