Patrick M. Emerson is Professor and Chair of Economics at Oregon State University, which he joined in 2006. Prior to his appointment at Oregon State, he was Associate Professor of Economics at the University of Colorado at Denver. Professor Emerson received his Ph.D. in economics from Cornell University in 2000 and an M.A. in Public Policy from the Center for Development at the University of Wisconsin in 1994.

Patrick M. Emerson's research interests are in development and labor economics as well as international, industrial organization and applied microeconomics. His recent research activity has concentrated on both theoretical and empirical examinations of child labor and of the consequences of corruption in developing countries. Professor Emerson's work has been published in numerous journals, including The Economic Journal, the Review of Economics and Statistics, the Journal of Development Economics, Economica, the World Bank Economic Review and Economic Inquiry.

He joined IZA as a Research Fellow in September 2007.