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NBER Working Group Descriptions

From a theoretical perspective insurance is a cornerstone of economic theory. It often used in textbooks as an example of a pure contingent claim (e.g. one that pays off upon flood damage to one's house, or death from natural causes). It is also frequently used as an example of markets that run into imperfections (such as moral hazard and adverse selection). Even the imperfections are interesting, of course, since they are affected by contractual form (as is true in corporate finance). The nature and structure of insurance contracts and equilibria remains of great interest to economists today.

The NBER working group on Insurance has a broad focus , encompassing theoretical, empirical, and industrial topics. Here are a few:

INSURANCE CUSTOMERS AND INVESTORS
INSURANCE PRODUCERS
EQUILIBRIUM
POLICY QUESTIONS

The NBER Insurance Project is addressing these and related questions over time. We have convened once a year for 2-day meeting where papers have been presented by researchers with discussants commenting on them. Participants in the working group are predominantly outstanding academics from a variety of fields, plus perhaps a group of carefully-selected practitioners.