Todd Sarver, Professor

Todd Sarver’s research focuses on microeconomic theory, decision theory, and behavioral economics. His interests include modeling psychological phenomenon such as regret and temptation, cognitive constraints and bounded rationality, and attitudes toward risk in dynamic environments. He has received grants from the National Science Foundation, and his most recent work has been published in Econometrica, Review of Economic Studies, Theoretical Economics, and Journal of Economic Theory.

Contact Info:

Office Location:	232 Social Sciences, Durham, NC 27708
Email Address:
Web Page:	https://sites.duke.edu/toddsarver/

Teaching (Spring 2026):

• ECON 705D.001, MICROECONOMIC ANALYSIS II Synopsis

  Social Sciences 111, TuTh 10:05 AM-11:20 AM

• ECON 705D.01D, MICROECONOMIC ANALYSIS II Synopsis

  Social Sciences 327, W 06:30 PM-07:20 PM

• ECON 705D.02D, MICROECONOMIC ANALYSIS II Synopsis

  Social Sciences 124, W 06:30 PM-07:20 PM

• ECON 885.02, TOPICS IN ECONOMIC THEORY Synopsis

  Languages 207, TuTh 01:25 PM-02:40 PM

• ECON 955S.01, RES SEM IN ECONOMICS THEORY Synopsis

  Social Sciences 113, Tu 11:45 AM-01:00 PM

Education:

Ph.D.

Boston University

2006

Specialties:

Microeconomic Theory
Behavioral Economics
Decision Theory

Research Interests:

Todd Sarver’s research focuses on microeconomic theory, decision theory, and behavioral economics. His interests include modeling psychological phenomenon such as regret and temptation, cognitive constraints and bounded rationality, and attitudes toward risk in dynamic environments. He has received grants from the National Science Foundation, and his most recent work has been published in Econometrica and Games and Economic Behavior.

Curriculum Vitae  Bio

Recent Publications   (More Publications)

1. Sarver, T; Sadowski, P, An Evolutionary Perspective on Updating Risk and Ambiguity Preferences (December, 2024)
2. Sadowski, P; Sarver, T, Adaptive preferences: An evolutionary model of non-expected utility and ambiguity aversion, Journal of Economic Theory, vol. 218 (June, 2024) [doi]  [abs]
3. Ahn, DS; Iijima, R; Le Yaouanq, Y; Sarver, T, Behavioral Characterizations of Naiveté for Time-Inconsistent Preferences, Cowles Foundation Discussion Paper no. 2074 (November, 2018)
4. Ahn, DS; Iijima, R; Sarver, T, Naiveté About Temptation and Self-Control: Foundations for Naive Quasi-Hyperbolic Discounting, Cowles Foundation Discussion Paper no. 2099 (February, 2018)
5. Sarver, T, Dynamic Mixture-Averse Preferences, Econometrica, vol. 86 no. 4 (January, 2018), pp. 1347-1382 [doi]  [abs]