For Dr. Jonathan Meer, economics is not just about the market; it is about the people within. One of the most rewarding aspects of his role in the economics department is the freedom to explore questions that spark his own curiosity. Those questions guide his research, and his commitment to his students encourages their own inquiries as they examine human behavior in the world of economics.
Meer looks forward to stepping into his new role as head of the Department of Economics at Texas A&M’s College of Arts & Sciences, to work collaboratively with his colleagues and students to keep the department on an upward trajectory.
“Economics is the study of human decision-making and choice under scarcity,” explains Meer. “Our choices are always limited. As I tell my students in my Principles of Microeconomics class: everything is economics.”
The Backward Concept of Philanthropy
Meer earned a Bachelor of Arts in economics from Princeton University in 2002, followed by a Ph.D. from Stanford University in 2009. Since then, he has worked as a professor of economics, and a research associate at the National Bureau of Economic Research.
“What makes economics so interesting is that we're studying humans and human behavior,” says Meer. “People think that economics is about the stock market and interest rates, but that's only a small part of it.”
His research centers around charitable giving and the economics of education.
One aspect of philanthropic economics that fascinates Meer is the seemingly backward nature of giving: “If you take the basic, too-naive models of economics, the last thing you would ever do is give your money away,” he says. “And yet people are incredibly generous—especially Americans.”
Meer compares fundraising to advertising, questioning whether it creates new giving. He poses a scenario: If every company is advertising and buyers are overwhelmed with ads, does it truly influence behavior, or are people simply doing what they were going to do anyway?
“Nonprofits try to raise money, but the real question is: Does fundraising grow the size of the total pie, or is it just slicing it up differently?” A successful nonprofit raises a lot of money—maybe because they are good at fundraising or because they have a great cause.”
In his research, Meer used data from DonorsChoose.org, a transparent platform in which public school teachers raise money for their classrooms. He compared projects that received standard support to those that benefited from external matches—for example, a large company like Exxon sponsoring math classrooms in Houston.
He found that the added attention not only increased funding for the nonprofit itself but also boosted donations to similar efforts in other cities. His findings suggest that donors may develop a “taste” for a specific type of giving once they are exposed to it.
“It’s hard to measure the effect of fundraising because life isn’t randomly assigned,” Meer explains. “It is like students and grades — those who get good grades may just be the kind of people who succeed anyway. Similarly, a charity that fundraises well may already be more appealing.”
He also highlights how social pressure affects giving: “Social pressure plays a role. If someone you know asks you to give, it is harder to say no than if a stranger asks,” he says. “That is part of what makes economics so interesting—it is really the study of human behavior, not just money or market
A Few Kind Words
Meer teaches Economics 202: Principles of Microeconomics, the largest undergraduate course at Texas A&M, with online-based instruction and multiple sections; this course reaches more than 3,000 students annually. Since 2017, he has consistently emailed the top 10 percent of students at the end of each semester, congratulating them on their strong performance and suggesting pathways in economics.
“Sometimes you just need a pep talk, and here is an easy way to give one. Someone tells you, ‘Hey, not only did you do well in this class—you did really well,’” he says. “Maybe you should consider doing more of this sort of thing, and here’s how you would go about doing that.”
Over time, and after writing many such emails, one of his Ph.D. students, Olivia Edwards, suggested studying the impact of Meer’s emails. Together, they launched a research project to analyze how these messages of encouragement might shape student choices.
Using a sample size of around 2,000 students who scored just above and just below the cutoff point, they compared students with identical academic performance. The only difference: some received the email; others did not.
Their findings revealed that students who received the email were more likely to take additional intermediate economics courses, as compared to those who did not receive the email.
Meer and Edwards co-authored the study, titled “The Economics of Encouragement: Can a Simple Email Shape Major Choice?” The paper was featured in the Financial Times and is forthcoming in the Economics of Education Review, a leading academic journal.
“This costs me 15 minutes a semester to do,” says Meer. “You never know when you change the course of someone’s life—hopefully for the better—just with a kind word. Again, economics does not have this reputation for thinking about things like altruism or kindness, but I think that’s the mistake people make about economics.”
Higher education in many ways is one of the engines that has propelled America to be the dominant leader that it is. This system was set up to attract the brightest minds from around the world, and for Texas A&M, from around the state. Ideally, we will equip them with the tools they need to continue improving the world.
Do Grades Really Influence Success?
Meer is also exploring whether high college grades are linked to long-term earnings after graduation. It’s a question many undergraduates wonder about—and one that lacks definitive answers. “I was trying to convince my students that their grades actually matter,” he recalls. “I assumed that surely someone has researched this.”
The challenge, he notes, isolating the effect of grades from the personal attributes. Students who earn high grades may already possess qualities such as enthusiasm, conscientiousness or time management, which employers value. “So, is it the grades that are causing higher earnings,” he asks, “or is it just that people with good grades are the same people who do well in the labor force? It’s a tricky question.”
As new data arrives from colleges in Texas, Meer looks forward to examining the results and uncovering potential insights.
Where Bright Minds Gather: Leadership with Purpose
As the newly appointed head of the Department of Economics, Meer believes the department is in fantastic shape. “We have a great department, and I have great colleagues,” he says. “That’s really why I pushed this role onto my plate.”
He enjoys working with bright students across all levels—undergraduate, master’s, and Ph.D. One of his goals is to continue attracting and supporting students in the economics department, recognizing them as essential to its continued success. He aims to foster an environment of inquiry, encouraging students to ask questions and pursue their curiosity.
“That’s the kind of student that makes us the happiest,” Meer said. “It doesn’t have to be the person who has a 100 in the class, but the person who’s passionate and willing to work hard.”
For Meer, empowering students, faculty and the department to continue their momentum and pursue meaningful research is central to his vision. “One of my absolute favorite things is to hear from my former students—who, of course, in my head are still undergrads,” he says. “I am impressed by what they have accomplished. It is one of the things that can keep me riding on a cloud for a month when I hear from a former student who is telling me what they are up to.”