Economic Policy

Economic policies are the end results of economic planning: the decisions governments make to influence the production, consumption, and sharing of wealth. RAND research has explored economic policies from the local to the international level, including their effects on international trade and foreign relations, their relation to policies focusing on public health and the environment, and their impact on economic growth and recessions.

  • Tim Wolf talks about his father at a memorial at RAND's headquarters in Santa Monica, Calif., January 26, 2017, photo by Diane Baldwin/RAND Corporation

    Content

    Tim Wolf: Carrying on His Family's Commitment to RAND

    Charles Wolf, Jr. was an economist who spent more than 60 years at RAND and was the founding dean of what is now the Pardee RAND Graduate School. He and his wife, Theresa, included a $1 million bequest in their estate plans to support the school and its students. It's a commitment his son Tim plans to carry forward.

    Jul 9, 2019

  • White House senior adviser Jared Kushner arrives for the U.S.-hosted “Peace to Prosperity” conference, in Manama, Bahrain, June 25, 2019, photo by Matt Spetalnick/Reuters

    Commentary

    Development with No Political Framework Is a Car Without an Engine

    Differing historical narratives, asymmetry of power, security concerns, upheaval in the larger region, poverty, and religious differences all make Israel-Palestine one of the world's most intractable conflicts. An early-summer meeting in Bahrain served as a sales session of sorts for the economic half of the Trump administration's proposal to solve it.

    Jul 9, 2019

  • Pardee RAND students shared their Tech Lab Pilot projects during a 2017 open house

    Essay

    Pardee RAND Reimagines the Future of Public Policy Problem Solving

    The Pardee RAND Graduate School is taking a new approach to public policy education. Three new streams of study and action will better align with today's policy needs. Faculty and students will shift the focus from coming up with solutions to actually implementing them.

    Jan 7, 2019

  • Customer service reps in call center

    Journal Article

    The Services Sector in India

    Article shows that India's services sector has remained low value-added for years. It recommends that value-added services be linked to the manufacturing sector through public policy to enhance the contribution of services to economic growth.

    Oct 26, 2018

  • Dissertation

    Dissertation

    Harmonizing Discretionary Policy Choice with Fiscal Rule Making: Mexico after Fiscal and Energy Sector Reforms

    Studies the long-term effectiveness and vulnerability of a diverse set of fiscal policies, which propose lump-sum transfers and different consumption tax exemptions.

    Sep 14, 2018

  • RAND researcher Anna Elizabeth 'Nancy' Nimitz, September 1, 1958

    Content

    A Brief History of RAND

    RAND was incorporated as a nonprofit corporation in 1948. From its early years to the present, RAND research is characterized by its objectivity and nonpartisanship, its quality and scientific rigor, and its dedication to improving policymaking on the most pressing issues of the day.

    Aug 3, 2018

  • A woman looks at ribbons bearing messages wishing for the unification of two Koreas that decorate a barbed-wire fence near the demilitarized zone separating the two Koreas in Paju, South Korea, May 24, 2018

    Commentary

    Difficulties Integrating North Korean Defectors Suggest Challenges in Reunifying Korea

    Despite expansive government aid, North Korean defectors in South Korea remain a nation within a nation, co-existent yet separate. If South Korea cannot fully adopt and assimilate 30,805 North Korea defectors, how will South Korea ever embrace roughly 25 million North Koreans in the event of reunification?

    Jun 11, 2018

  • Collage of public policy subject matter

    Brochure

    RAND's Most Influential Research from 70 Years Working in the Public Interest

    Over its 70-year history, RAND has continuously demonstrated that rigorous research and analysis can help address some of the world's most challenging problems.

    May 14, 2018

  • Honour guards at the Great Hall of the People in Beijing, China, July 4, 2016

    Commentary

    To Protect Interests Abroad, China Will Feature a Diverse Array of Military, Non-Military Forces

    As Beijing grapples with the realities of an economy increasingly susceptible to disruption from distant influences, experts debate how the Chinese military might protect overseas interests. Some have speculated that China may seek a military like that of the United States. Others have dismissed such a possibility.

    Apr 9, 2018

  • News Release

    News Release

    To Protect Overseas Interests, China Likely to Rely More on Contractors and Host Nation Forces Than Its Own Military

    China is far less likely to involve its military in security activities abroad than has been the case for the United States or for imperial powers of previous centuries. To bolster security for the Belt and Road Initiative and other economic activities abroad, China will instead rely heavily on civilian contractors and host nation-provided forces, with Chinese military and paramilitary forces playing an important but limited role.

    Mar 27, 2018

  • A U.S. gunnery officer discusses techniques with Chinese sailors before a joint counter-piracy exercise in the Gulf of Aden, August 24, 2013

    Report

    How China Is Pursuing Overseas Security

    Thousands of China's commercial enterprises are located overseas. Millions of its citizens travel abroad each year. To protect its interests from maritime piracy, civil conflict, and other threats, China is likely to rely more on contractors and host nation forces than its own military. What will this mean for the United States?

    Mar 26, 2018

  • Dissertation

    Dissertation

    Regional Economic Growth and International Capital Flows: The Case of Ukraine

    This dissertation examines divergent economic paths between regions in several countries and recommends specific steps for Ukraine's regional and overall economic policy.

    Feb 26, 2018

  • 1040 Tax Form

    Commentary

    Fighting Poverty with Taxes

    As the debate over tax reform continues, finding ways to help the most disadvantaged segment of the population should be considered. Expanding the Earned Income Tax Credit and outreach to low-income populations could increase incentive to file or promote awareness about benefits and generate positive impacts in the longer term.

    Nov 22, 2017

  • Sling load inspector checks the load plan paperwork prior to sling load operations with the 44th Expeditionary Signal Battalion March 22, 2016 at the Grafenwoehr Training Area, Germany

    Commentary

    The Long-Term Budget Shortfall and National Security: A Problem the U.S. Should Stop Avoiding

    Bold promises and even actions that balance the budget for the short term should not mask the fact that the U.S. government has failed to face its long-term budget problems. Without changes, the ability to pay for many functions — including defense — will rely wholly on borrowed money.

    Nov 6, 2017

  • Journal Article

    Journal Article

    The Brutal Politics of China's Economic Overhaul: What Xi Can Learn from FDR

    If China succeeds in overcoming vested interests that oppose reform, Xi will have overseen a dramatic transformation of the country's economic and political institutions as well as reconfigured politics in a lasting manner evocative of FDR's impact.

    Oct 11, 2017

  • Journal Article

    Journal Article

    In with the Big, Out with the Small: Removing Small-Scale Reservations in India

    Our analysis suggests that the removal of small-scale reservations increased overall employment by encouraging the growth of younger, larger establishments—those that are most likely to pay higher wages, create more investment, be more productive, and generate growth in employment.

    Aug 8, 2017

  • The USS Lassen arrives at a South Korean naval port in Donghae as sailors wave South Korean and U.S. flags, March 9, 2013

    Essay

    Are America's Overseas Security Commitments Worth It?

    A growing debate has called into question U.S. international security commitments and whether their economic value outweighs their costs. Research suggests that the magnitude of the benefits could be substantial.

    Jul 7, 2017

  • Brochure

    Brochure

    Innovating for Answers: Social and Economic Policy Research at RAND

    This publication highlights recent RAND social and economic policy research projects that have produced important new policies, framed issues in new ways, balanced multiple priorities and difficult trade-offs, and prompted meaningful change.

    May 31, 2017

  • News Release

    News Release

    Unification Could Be Good for North Korea

    While Korean unification is a major issue in South Korea, North Korean propaganda suggests that an ROK-led unification would be a disaster for North Korean elites, using this fear to bind elites closer to the regime and make them more hostile and resistant to ideas of unification. Without changing those views of North Korean elites it is difficult to imagine how peaceful unification could be achieved.

    Apr 27, 2017

  • Hands with South Korean and North Korean flags clasp one another

    Report

    How to Prepare North Korean Elites for Unification

    North Korean propaganda suggests that unification led by the South would be a disaster for Northern elites. Unless the elites are convinced otherwise, peaceful unification may be impossible. What could South Korea do to help them feel better about, or at least less resistant to, unification?

    Apr 26, 2017