David is a pioneer in the use of field experiments in economics. Economics has historically been an observational rather than an experimental science, but David has been leading a movement to introduce experiments wherever possible. He has used field experiments to test theories of auction bidding and charitable fundraising, and at Yahoo!, has been using experiments to measure the effects of display advertising on advertisers’ sales.

Before coming to Yahoo!, David was the Arizona Public Service Professor of Economics at the University of Arizona. He has also taught at Vanderbilt University and at the Kellogg School of Management at Northwestern University.

In addition to his leadership in the area of field experiments, David also achieved recognition as the first academic expert on the economics of online auctions. He has also pursued recent research on the effects of bus-driver incentives in Santiago, and on the strategic play of professional soccer and poker players.

David is the Co-Editor for Field Experiments at Economic Inquiry, and he also serves on the editorial boards of Experimental Economics and the BE Press Journals of Economic Analysis and Policy. As passionate about teaching as he is about research, David is a past president of the Society of Economic Educators, and is a coauthor of the best-selling game theory textbook Games of Strategy, Third Edition, with Avinash Dixit and Susan Skeath. David has also served as Vice President of Information for the Economic Science Association, a worldwide professional organization of experimental economists.

David holds a bachelor’s degree in Astrophysical Sciences from Princeton University, and a PhD in economics from MIT.