We study how opening private markets to retail investors affects investors and firms. Calibrating a production-based asset-pricing model, we find that democratization raises retail investors’ welfare, but barely. Retail investors benefit little from democratization even if they face no extra...

Surveys provide much of what we know in social science and are often the only source of information on private behaviors, attitudes and expectations. Strands of the literature document four broad error sources: survey coverage, unit non-response, item non-response, and...

Artificial intelligence is increasingly used for political advice. We study an AI that is better informed about a payoff-relevant state and cares both about accuracy and about the perceived welfare of the individual it advises. The AI then has an...

The Becker Friedman Institute for Economics (BFI) serves as a hub for cutting-edge analysis and research across the entire University of Chicago economics community, uniting researchers from the Booth School of Business, the Kenneth C. Griffin Department of Economics, the...

Inspired by our namesakes, Nobel Laureates Gary Becker and Milton Friedman, who believed that economics research could help improve the world, BFI works with the Chicago Economics community to turn its evidence-based research into real-world impact.

University of Chicago faculty members and other accomplished economists set the goals and direction of the Institute.

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