Professor

James Bang, PhD

In addition to basic courses in economic theory, Jim teaches courses on international economics, institutional economics, and econometrics at both the undergraduate and graduate levels.

Jim's research focuses on institutional determinants of economic development. In this vein, he has published and forthcoming articles on the determinants of civil war, the impact of civil war on economic growth, and the impact of civil war on cultural attitudes towards women. He has also investigated the role of institutions in determining migration, remittances, and gender norms.

Some of Jim's more recent work has focused more on predictive modeling using machine learning. Machine learning is widely and increasingly relevant for business data analytics for things like targeted advertising (Google, for example) and suggesting content or products to consumers (Netflix, Amazon, for example). In Jim's research, he applies this technique for prediction to civil war, economic growth, and health care outcomes.

In his free time, Jim helps coach his sons' sports teams, is a Cub Scout Den Leader, and enjoys cooking.

Contact Us

Contact James Bang for information on Economics

McMullen Hall 124A

563-333-6102

BangJamesT@bianlifan.com

Education and Training

PhD, MS, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, Economics
BA, BS, Truman State University, Economics

Areas of Professional Interest

Immigration
Institutional Economics
Economics of Conflict
Development Economics

Recent Publications

Weiss ME, Yakusheva O, Bobay KL, Costa L, Hughes RG, Nuccio S, Hamilton M, Bahr S, Siclovan D, Bang, JT (2019). Effect of Implementing Discharge Readiness Assessment in Adult Medical-Surgical Units on 30-Day Return to Hospital: The READI Randomized Clinical Trial. JAMA Netw Open. 2(1):e187387. doi:10.1001/jamanetworkopen.2018.7387
Bang, J. T., Mitra, A., & Wunnava, P. V. (2016). Do remittances improve income inequality? An instrumental variable quantile analysis of the Kenyan case. Economic Modelling, 58, 394-402.
Bang, J.T. & Mitra, A (2016). "Institutions, information, and commitment: the role of democracy in conflict." Defence and Peace Economics. February. p 1-23.
Biswas, A., O'Reilly, C., Bang, J.T., and Mitra A. (2016). Civil war and economic growth: the case for a closer look at forms of mobilization. Applied Economics Letters. 23(15). p. 1057-1061.
Mitra, A., Bang, J.T., & Biswas, A. (2015). Media freedom and gender inequality: a cross-national instrumental variable quantile analysis. Applied Economics. 47(22). p. 2278-2292.
Mitra, A, Bang, J.T. & Biswas, A. (2015). Gender, governance, & growth: is access or opportunity more important? Feminist Economics. 21(1): 110-35.
Mitra, A., Bang, J.T., & Wunnava, P.V. (2014). Financial Liberalization and the Selection of Emigrants: A Cross-national Analysis. Emperical Economics, 47(1), 199-226.
Bang, James T. and Bharati Basu (2013). Insurance and Remittances: New Evidence from Latin American Immigrants to the US. Migration Letters. Vol. 10(3), p. 383-398.
Bang, James T. and Mitra, A. (2013). Civil War, Ethnicity, and the Migration of Skilled Labor. Eastern Economic Journal, 39, 387-401.
Basuchoudhary, Atin, Bang, James T., Sen, Tinni, David, John (2018). Predicting Hotspots: Using Machine Learning to Understand Civil Conflict. Rowman & Littlefield.
Basuchoudhary, Atin, Bang, James T., Sen, Tinni (2017). Machine-learning Techniques in Economics: New Tools for Predicting Economic Growth. SpringerBriefs in Economics.