Julie A. Nelson (born 1956) is an emeritus professor of economics at the

University of Massachusetts Boston The University of Massachusetts Boston (stylized as UMass Boston) is a public research university in Boston, Massachusetts. It is the only public research university in Boston and the third-largest campus in the five-campus University of Massa ...

, most known for her application of

feminist theory Feminist theory is the extension of feminism into theoretical, fictional, or philosophical discourse. It aims to understand the nature of gender inequality. It examines women's and men's social roles, experiences, interests, chores, and femin ...

to questions of the definition of the discipline of

economics Economics () is the social science that studies the production, distribution, and consumption of goods and services. Economics focuses on the behaviour and interactions of economic agents and how economies work. Microeconomics analyzes ...

, and its models and

methodology In its most common sense, methodology is the study of research methods. However, the term can also refer to the methods themselves or to the philosophical discussion of associated background assumptions. A method is a structured procedure for br ...

. Nelson received her Ph.D. degree in economics from the

University of Wisconsin–Madison A university () is an institution of higher (or tertiary) education and research which awards academic degrees in several academic disciplines. Universities typically offer both undergraduate and postgraduate programs. In the United Stat ...

. Her work focuses on gender and economics, philosophy and methodology of economics, ecological economics, and

quantitative methods Quantitative research is a research strategy that focuses on quantifying the collection and analysis of data. It is formed from a deductive approach where emphasis is placed on the testing of theory, shaped by empiricist and positivist philoso ...

. Nelson is among the founders and the most highly cited scholars in the field of

feminist economics Feminist economics is the critical study of economics and economies, with a focus on gender-aware and inclusive economic inquiry and policy analysis. Feminist economic researchers include academics, activists, policy theorists, and practition ...

Education

Nelson graduated from St. Olaf College with a B.A. in economics in 1978. Nelson earned a M.A. in economics from the

University of Wisconsin-Madison A university () is an institution of higher (or tertiary) education and research which awards academic degrees in several academic disciplines. Universities typically offer both undergraduate and postgraduate programs. In the United States, th ...

in 1982. In 1986, Nelson also received a Ph. D. from the

Career

''Beyond Economic Man: Feminist Theory and Economics'', a 1993 book Nelson co-edited with Marianne A. Ferber, has been called a 'landmark' and the 'manifesto' of feminist economics. A follow-up volume, ''Feminist Economics Today'', summarizes the development of the field over the following ten years Nelson is author, co-author, or editor of numerous academic articles and books on both feminist theory and the empirical study of behavior, as well as a co-author of the "in Context" series of economics textbooks. Her 2006 book (2nd edition, 2018) ''Economics for Humans'' dismisses the view that markets are inexorable "machines" and discusses how a better understanding of the relation of economics and values could improve both business and

care work Care work is a sub-category of work that includes all tasks that directly involve care processes done in service of others. It is often differentiated from other forms of work because it is considered to be intrinsically motivated. This perspectiv ...

. She argues that the current approach to studying the economy as though it were an asocial machine, using only tools that emphasize 'detachment, mathematical reasoning, formality and abstraction', is narrow and damaging. She suggests that the metaphor of a "beating heart" would better frame discussions about the economy in terms of values. Other recent work addresses issues of ethics and economics, and particularly in relation to climate change, and how stereotypes about women have distorted recent behavioral economics research. Nelson was a founding member of the

International Association for Feminist Economics The International Association for Feminist Economics (IAFFE) is a non-profit international association dedicated to raising awareness and inquiry of feminist economics. It has approximately six hundred members in sixty-four countries. The associat ...

, an associate editor of the journal ''

Feminist Economics Feminist economics is the critical study of economics and economies, with a focus on gender-aware and inclusive economic inquiry and policy analysis. Feminist economic researchers include academics, activists, policy theorists, and practition ...

'', the 2019 President of the

Association for Social Economics The Association for Social Economics (ASE), founded in New York City in 1941, is a learned society in the broadly defined area of social economics, and is part of the Allied Social Science Associations. Social economics is the study of the ethical ...

, and is the Economics Section editor of the ''

Journal of Business Ethics The ''Journal of Business Ethics'' is a peer-reviewed academic journal published by Springer Nature B.V. The Journal of Business Ethics is one of th50 top business journals used by the Financial Times (FT)in compiling the prestigious Business Sch ...

''. Nelson started her career at the United States Bureau of Labor Statistics, subsequently became a tenured associate professor at the

University of California, Davis The University of California, Davis (UC Davis, UCD, or Davis) is a public land-grant research university near Davis, California. Named a Public Ivy, it is the northernmost of the ten campuses of the University of California system. The inst ...

, and then moved to the Boston, Massachusetts area, where she was professor of economics at the

and a senior research fellow with the

Global Development and Environment Institute The Global Development And Environment Institute (GDAE, pronounced “gee-day”) is a research center at Tufts University founded in 1993. GDAE conducts research and develops teaching materials in economics and related areas that follow an interdi ...

Selected bibliography

Books

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Book chapters

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Journal articles

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Pdf.
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References

External links

Julie Nelson’s website

Julie A. Nelson

{{DEFAULTSORT:Nelson, Julie A. 21st-century American economists American feminists American women economists Feminist economists 1956 births Living people University of Wisconsin–Madison College of Letters and Science alumni 21st-century American women