Annamaria Lusardi

Biography

Annamaria Lusardi is Senior Fellow at the Stanford Institute for Economic Policy Research (SIEPR) & the Director of the Initiative for Financial Decision-Making, a collaboration between SIEPR, the Graduate School of Business (GSB), and the Economics Department at Stanford University.

She is also Professor of Finance (by courtesy) at the GSB.

Previously, she was University Professor at The George Washington University and, before that, she was the Joel Z. and Susan Hyatt Professor of Economics at Dartmouth College, where she started her academic career.

She Was Appointed By Italy’s Minister Of Economy & Finance As The Director Of The Italian Financial Education Committee In Charge Of Designing And Implementing A National Strategy For Financial Literacy In Italy.

She Has Also Served As A Faculty Advisor For The Office Of Financial Education At The U.S. Department Of Treasury.

She has been ranked among the top 1% of economics and business researchers by citations.

Interviews

Annamaria Lusardi On Improving Financial Literacy. January 22, 2025.

Awards (Selected)

Honorary Degrees

Doctor of Science (Economics and Business Administration), University of Vaasa, Finland, September 2018.

Teaching Awards

Best Teacher, University of Chicago Harris School of Public Policy, (Macroeconomics), 1999-2000.

First Prize for Excellence in Teaching, Princeton University, 1989-90.

Research Awards

Fellow, Econometric Society, 2024

NEFE Inaugural 30th Anniversary Financial Education Impact Award, December 2022

Best Academic Paper, from MAIA (The Money Awareness and Inclusion Awards), for the publication: “Financial Education Affects Financial Knowledge and Downstream Behavior” (joint work with Tim Kaiser, Lukas Menkhoff and Carly Urban), May 31, 2022

Kulp-Wright Book Award from the American Risk and Insurance Association for the book: “Remaking Retirement: Debt in an Aging Economy,” (jointly edited with Olivia S. Mitchell),  May 2022

Ketchum Prize, FINRA Investor Education Foundation, for outstanding service and research to advance investor protection and financial capability in the U.S., 2018

Oscar and Shoshana Trachtenberg Prize for Scholarship, The George Washington University, presented annually to a tenured member of the faculty who has made significant original contributions to research and/or creative endeavors, 2018

Education

PhD Economics, Princeton University

BA Economics, Bocconi University

Positions

Senior Fellow, Stanford Institute for Economic Policy Research (2023 - Present)

Director, Initiative for Financial Decision-Making, Stanford University (2023 - Present)

Professor of Economics & Accountacy, George Washington University (2010 - 2023)

Professor of Economics, Dartmouth College (1992 - 2010)

Fields

Economics

Finance

Public Policy

Topics

Financial Literacy

Personal Finance

Applied Economics

Entrepreneurship

Journal Articles (Selected)

Books (Selected)

“The Importance of Financial Literacy: Opening a New Field,” with Olivia Mitchell, Journal of Economic Perspectives, vol. 37(4), pp. 137-54, Fall 2023.

“The Importance of Financial Literacy and Its Impact on Financial Wellbeing,” with Flore-Anne Messy, Journal of Financial Literacy and Wellbeing, vol. 1 (1), pp. 1-11, April 2023.

“Financial Education Affects Financial Knowledge and Downstream Behavior,” with Tim Kaiser, Lukas Menkhoff and Carly Urban, Journal of Financial Economics, vol. 145 (2), pp. 255-272, August 2022. 

 “Financial Literacy and Financial Resilience: Evidence from Around the World” with Leora  Klapper, Financial Management, Fall 2020, vol. 49(3), pp. 589-614. 

   “Optimal Financial Knowledge and Wealth Inequality,” with Olivia S. Mitchell and Pierre-Carl Michaud, Journal of Political Economy, April 2017, 125(2), pp. 431-477.

 “The Economic Importance of Financial Literacy: Theory and Evidence,” with Olivia S. Mitchell, Journal of Economic Literature, March 2014, 52(1), pp. 5-44.

Financial Literacy: Implications for Retirement Security and the Financial Marketplace

Remaking Retirement: Debt in an Aging Economy