Dr David Smerdon is a Senior Lecturer in the University of Queensland's School of Economics. He primarily works in behavioural and development economics. His research involves theory and modelling, experiments in the lab and field, and microeconometric analysis in order to investigate topics at the intersection of these fields.
David earned his PhD from the Tinbergen Institute and the University of Amsterdam (UvA) as a General Sir John Monash scholar, and afterwards worked as a PODER fellow at Bocconi University in Milan. His research often involves collaboration with non-academic partners, including aid agencies and NGOs like Save the Children, the International Rescue Committee (IRC) and CARE International. Prior to his academic career, David worked for the Australian Department of Treasury as a policy analyst, working on foreign aid and financial markets regulation. David is also a chess Grandmaster and occasionally combines his passions with research on chess topics such as gender inequality, cheating, and the life cycle of cognitive performance, supported by organisations such as the World Chess Federation (FIDE) and Chess Online.