Roger E. Bolton

Photo of Roger E. Bolton

William Brough Professor of Economics, Emeritus

Areas of Expertise

  • Regional and urban economics
  • Geography
  • History of economic thought
  • Social Capital in Regional Economics

Fields of Specialization

Regional and Urban Economics
Geography
History of Economic Thought

Research

“A Habermas-Inspired Approach to Social Capital in Regional Planning,” in Hans Westlund and Johan P. Larsson, eds., Handbook of Social Capital and Regional Development, Edward Elgar, Cheltenham, UK and Northampton, Massachusetts, 2016, pp. 492-519

“A Comparison of a Habermas-Inspired Approach and Economists’ Approaches to Social Capital”

“Keeping Options Open,” in symposium on state government policy for rural areas, Journal of Regional Analysis and Policy, 37:1, Spring 2007, pp. 4-6

“Classroom Computer Simulation of the Alonso Household Location Model in the Microeconomics Course,” Journal of Economic Education, Winter 2005

“Theory and Policy in Regional Science,” Annals of Regional Science, September 2004

“Local Social Capital and Entrepreneurship,” with Hans Westlund, Small Business Economics, September 2003

” “Place” as “Network”: Applications of Network Theory to Local Communities,” in Ake Andersson et al., eds., The Economics of Disappearing Distance (essays in honor of T. R. Lakshmanan), Ashgate, 2003

Community and Quality of Life: Data Needs for Informed Decision Making, National Academy Press for the National Research Council, National Academy of Sciences, 2002 (member of committee that wrote the book)

“Hexagonal Economic Regions Solve the Location Problem,” with Frank Morgan, The American Mathematical Monthly, February 2002

“Place Surplus, Exit, Voice, and Loyalty,” in Borje Johansson et al., eds., Regional Policies and Comparative Advantage, Edward Elgar, 2002

“What Power on Earth?  Arthur Latham Perry’s Reaction to Henry George,” unpublished conference paper, 1997

“New Regional Science and New Economics,” Australasian Journal of Regional Studies (inaugural issue), 1995

“Regional Science and Regional Practice,” with Rodney C. Jensen, International Regional Science Review, 1995

“‘Place Prosperity’ vs. ‘People Prosperity’ Revisited,” Urban Studies, 1992

“Regional Energy and Environmental Analysis,” with T. R. Lakshmanan, in Peter Nijkamp, editor, Handbook of Regional and Urban Economics, Vol. 1, Regional Economics, North Holland, 1986

“Regional Econometric Models,” Journal of Regional Science, 1985, reprinted in Ronald Bodkin, et al., eds., A History of Macroeconometric Model-Building, Edward Elgar, 1991

“Equity in Financing Local Services: The Case of Residential Refuse,” Resources and Conservation, 1984

Regional Diversity: Growth in the United States, 1960-90, with Gregory Jackson, George Masnick, Susan Bartlett, and John Pitkin, Auburn House for MIT Harvard Joint Center for Urban Studies, 1981

“The Impact of National Defense Spending in Urban Areas,” in Norman Glickman, ed., The Impact of Federal Policies on Urban Areas, Johns Hopkins University Press, 1980

“Defense Spending and Policies for Labor Surplus Areas,” in John Kain and John Meyer, eds., Essays in Regional Economics, Harvard University Press, 1971

“Higher Education for Everybody: Who Pays?” in W. Todd Furniss, ed., Higher Education for Everybody, American Council on Education, 1971

“Predictive Models for State and Local Government Purchases,” in James S. Duesenberry et al., The Brookings Econometric Model: Some Further Results, Rand McNally, 1969

“Burdens and Bargains in Higher Education,” The Public Interest, Spring 1968

Defense and Disarmament, editor and major contributor, Prentice-Hall, 1966 (Spanish edition published as Defensa y Desarme, Editorial Grijalbo,1968)

Defense Purchases and Regional Growth, Brookings Institution, 1966

Other

 

Selected Work Experience

At Williams since 1966

Book Review Editor, Journal of Regional Science, 1987-2012 (in this 25-year period I arranged and edited more than 1,200 book reviews and wrote 36 reviews myself for the journal)

Various citizen planning positions in local and regional governments

Visiting Professor:
Clark University (Geography) Fall 1993
University of Wisconsin at Madison, Fall 1989 (Distinguished Visiting Professor, La Follette Institute of Public Affairs; also taught in Department of Urban and Regional Planning)
University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, Fall 1988 (George A. Miller Visiting Professor of Geo graphy and Urban Planning)
University of Pennsylvania, 1981-82 (City and Regional Planning)
Wellesley College, Fall 1977 (Economics)

Research Associate, MIT-Harvard Joint Center for Urban Studies, 1978-81

Lecturer in residence, Foreign Service Institute, 1968, 1969

Associated Staff Member, Brookings Institution, 1965-68