Benjamin Golub’s research focuses on social and economic networks. He examines how these networks form when agents invest strategically in relationships, and why some societies build up a lot of social capital while others do not. He has also studied the economic theory of how networks mediate important processes such as information diffusion, cooperation, informal insurance, and trade. He is very interested in applications of this research to developing economies. He expects to receive his PhD in the fall of 2012 from Stanford University.