Professor of Political Science and Political Economy

Director, Center for Philosophy, Politics, and Economics

​Immediate Past ​President, Public Choice Society


David Skarbek

I study the political economy of extralegal governance institutions. My work has appeared in journals in criminology, economics, and political science, and I've published two award-winning books, both with Oxford University Press. 


I also enjoy interdisciplinary program building. In 2012, I joined the newly-established Department of Political Economy at King's College London. For the next five years, I helped build a new department and degree programs in Political Economy and Philosophy, Politics, and Economics. As the inaugural Director of Brown's PPE Center, we are likewise building a wide range of vibrant academic programs and scholarly conversations that bridge traditional disciplinary boundaries.