Political Economy

The School has considerable strengths in domestic, comparative and international political economy. The main focus of this work has been on the way in which states and markets interact and how institutional and political forces shape economic policy and economic outcomes. 

Australia and the world face a range of major political economy challenges, especially in the wake of the 2008 financial crisis and amidst the rise of emerging market economies. The challenges include sluggish economic growth,rising inequality, rising debt levels, global poverty, mounting environmental concerns and questions about the authority and governance capacities of states within nations and in the the global economy.

Researchers in the School have attracted a significant number of external grants and have published work in leading domestic and international journals and with leading book publishers.

Scholars in the School in their teaching and research have been focusing on a wide range of political economy issues. These include the origins and aftermath of the 2008 financial crisis and the subsequent Euro crisis, the challenges of global economic governance, the intersection of political economy and security challenges, feminist political economy and the impact of institutional frameworks on gender inequality, the links between development, trade and global poverty, the history of ideas in political economy and on how we conceive of the interaction between states and markets, as well as global health governance and the interaction between the environment and trade agreements.