Econometrics at Harvard

The place of Harvard in the development of econometrics is assessed through the research of its faculty and the development of the courses taught. Over the course of the last century, as the content of econometrics was itself transformed, we find that the Department of Economics at Harvard occupied a singular place in the econometric landscape. This idiosyncrasy was defined by large projects, such as the Harvard barometer of the 1920s and the post-war development of input–output analysis, but also by a lack of common purpose that often characterised the work of its members. Through the storied halls of the University passed many of the best and brightest, but few were given the chance to pursue their projects on a durable basis, to the detriment of the constitution of a “Harvard econometrics”.