Nobel Prize 2023 - Winner of the economics prize announced

Claudia Goldin: key facts

Claudia Goldin was born on May 14, 1946, in New York. She is an American economist, economic historian, and specialist in labor economics and gender issues.

Goldin earned her Doctor of Philosophy degree in 1972 and is a professor at Harvard University and a collaborator with the National Bureau of Economic Research. She has been recognized as one of the ten most influential female economists globally.

The 2023 laureate presented the first comprehensive report on women's earnings and participation in the labor market over the centuries. Her research reveals the causes of changes and the primary sources of the lingering gender gap.

Women are significantly underrepresented in the global labor market and predominantly earn less than men. Goldin reviewed archives and collected data over 200 years, allowing her to demonstrate how and why gender differences in income and employment levels have changed.

Throughout the twentieth century, women's educational levels consistently increased, and in most high-income countries, it is now significantly higher than men's. Goldin showcased these revolutionary changes.

Reviewing archives, collecting, and correcting historical data, this year's laureate in economic sciences presented new and often remarkable facts.

She also provided a deeper understanding of the factors influencing women's opportunities in the labor market and the demand for their work. The fact that women's choices are often limited by marriage and responsibility for home and family lies at the core of her analysis and explanatory models.

Goldin's research also demonstrates that changes take time, as choices that impact an entire career are based on expectations that may later prove to be incorrect. Her knowledge extends far beyond the borders of the United States, and similar patterns are observed in many other countries.

Nobel Prize in Economic Sciences: key facts

The Sveriges Riksbank Prize in Economic Sciences in Memory of Alfred Nobel is awarded by the Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences, following the same principles as the other Nobel Prizes that have existed since 1901.

However, it is not entirely accurate to unanimously consider it a "Nobel" prize, as Alfred Nobel did not include economics in his will in 1895. Nevertheless, this in no way diminishes its prestige.

Founded by the Sveriges Riksbank in 1968 on its 300th anniversary in memory of Alfred Nobel, the prize is indeed associated with the Nobel Prize tradition.

The first laureates of this prize were Ragnar Frisch from Norway and Jan Tinbergen from the Netherlands, awarded for "creating and applying dynamic models for the analysis of economic processes."

• Economic Sciences Prizes: 54
• Laureates in Economic Sciences: 92
• Male laureates: 84
• Female laureates: 2
• Youngest laureate: 46 years old
• Oldest laureate: 90 years old

The disparity between the number of prizes and laureates is because the prize can be awarded to multiple individuals. Out of 54 prizes, one scientist received it 25 times, two received it 20 times, and three received it 9 times.

Previous year's winners

In 2022, the Nobel Prize in Economic Sciences laureates were three American economists - Ben Bernanke, Douglas Diamond, and Philip Dybvig, honored for their "research on banks and financial crises."

Interestingly, Bernanke served as the Chairman of the Federal Reserve System of the United States during the mortgage crisis of 2007, which evolved into the global economic crisis of 2008. He was the ideologist of the quantitative easing policy that helped the U.S. recover from the situation.

Nobel Week 2023

Recall that this year's Nobel Week occurs from October 2 to October 9. The prizes have already been awarded in physiology or medicine, physics, chemistry, and literature, and the Peace Prize has been announced.