Thomas Ferguson is the Research Director at the 51ºÚÁÏÍø. He is Professor Emeritus at the University of Massachusetts, Boston, and a member of the . He received his Ph.D. from Princeton University and taught formerly at MIT and the University of Texas, Austin. He is the author or coauthor of several books, including Golden Rule (University of Chicago Press, 1995) and Right Turn (Hill & Wang, 1986). His articles have appeared in many scholarly journals, including the Quarterly Journal of Economics, International Organization, International Studies Quarterly, and the Journal of Economic History. He is a member of the editorial board of the International Journal of Political Economy and a longtime Contributing Editor at The Nation.
Thomas Ferguson
- Leader of Historical American Political Finance Data at the National Archives
- Leader of Financial Stability
- Leader of Political Economy of Distribution
By this expert
Currency Wars, Social Class, and the Republican Dilemma Over Medicaid

Faced with a shrinking list of options to trim the budget, Republicans are now eyeing Medicaid - but will that fly among Trump supporters?
Trump and Wealth-Price Inflation: Still Running in the Background All the Time
Consumer demand by America’s most affluent citizens is driving consumer spending, and consumer spending, in turn, is the main force keeping inflation so high
Political Investments

An interview with Thomas Ferguson on the 2024 US election conducted by Andrew Yamakawa Elrod and Tim Barker for Phenomenal World
How the Wall Street Journal Blew the Story of the Democrats and Inflation
The firehose of affluent consumption continues to drive inflation, not the stimulus package
Featuring this expert
The Lehman Disaster and Why It Matters Today

On September 15, 2008, Lehman Brothers, a giant investment bank with a storied history, filed for bankruptcy. The shock was profound; world markets melted down.
YSI Conference on Debt Sustainability

Discussions on the key conceptual and policy themes for sovereign debt sustainability with a view to proposing possible policy reforms.
Global Inflation Today: What Is to Be Done? PERI Conference, featuring INET Research Director Thomas Ferguson and INET Grantees

Emerging out of the COVID lockdown, inflation in the U.S. and globally has risen to the highest levels in 40 years. On December 2-3, PERI will host a conference to explore the causes of this global inflation spike. Conference participants will also provide critical perspectives on the austerity macroeconomic policies being implemented globally to control inflation and will propose alternative policies capable of managing inflation without imposing austerity and rising mass unemployment.
Young Scholars Initiative Early Career Days

publishing • the job market • writing • teaching • mental health • work-life balance