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Boyd Center for Business and Economic Research
Department of Economics
2200 Sutherland Ave, F132
The University of Tennessee
Knoxville, TN 37919
Email: mharris@utk.edu Phone: (865) 974-5591
AFFILIATIONS
Boyd Distinguished Professor of Health Economics, The University of Tennessee, Department of Economics and Boyd Center for Business and Economic Research, 2026-Present
Boyd Distinguished Associate Professor of Health Economics, The University of Tennessee, Department of Economics and Boyd Center for Business and Economic Research, 2022-2026
Associate Professor (with tenure), The University of Tennessee Department of Economics and Boyd Center for Business and Economic Research, 2019-2026
Assistant Professor, The University of Tennessee Department of Economics and Boyd Center for Business and Economic Research, 2013-2019
Economic Advisory Council to Tennessee Department of Health, 2015-2019.
EDUCATION
Ph.D., Economics, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, 2013
M.A., Economics, George Mason University, 2007
B.A., Economics, University of Virginia, 2000
PUBLISHED AND ACCEPTED PAPERS (Economics)
Cronin, C.J., Matthew C. Harris and Nicolas R. Ziebarth (2026) “The Anatomy of U.S. Sick Leave Schemes: Evidence from Public School Teachers”. Review of Economics and Statistics, February: p.1-46 (online early print)
Xiao, Yancheng., Matthew C Harris, Alissa O’Halloran. and Jamison Pike (2025) “Influenza Vaccination and Occupational Social Intensity: Evidence From U.S. Workers.” Health Economics, 34: 1614-1647. https://doi.org/10.1002/hec.4974
Baucum, Matt, Matthew C. Harris, Lawrence M. Kessler and Guanyi Lu (2025) “Reducing overdose deaths and mitigating county disparities: optimal allocation of substance use treatment centers” Manufacturing & Service Operations Management 27(3) 736-756.
Evans, Mary F., Matthew C. Harris and Lawrence M. Kessler (2022) “The Hazards of Unwinding the Opioid Epidemic: Evidence from Child Maltreatment” American Economic Journal: Economic Policy 13(4) 192-231
Turner, Kyle, Mathew C. Harris, T. Russell Crook, and Annette L. Ranft (2022) “Too much of a good thing? An assessment of the effects of competitive and cooperative action repertoires on firm performance” Management Decision 60(1) 123-145. https://doi.org/10.1108/MD-03-2020-0244
Harris, Matthew C., Lawrence M. Kessler, Matthew N. Murray, and M. Beth Glenn (2020) “Prescription Opioids and Labor Market Pains” Journal of Human Resources 55(4) 1319-1364.
Featured in New York Times, Yahoo Finance.
Harris, Matthew C., Yinan Liu and Ian McCarthy (2020) “Capacity Constraints and Time Allocation in Public Health Clinics” Health Economics 29(3) 2020 324-336.
Harris, Matthew C. and Lawrence M. Kessler (2019) “Initial Exercise Behavior, Habit, and Persistence” Journal of Economic Behavior and Organization 166(1) 688-708
Bruce, Donald J., Elizabeth A. Glass, and Matthew C. Harris (2019) “On the Effectiveness of State Tax and Expenditure Policies to Encourage Entrepreneurship” Journal of Entrepreneurship and Public Policy 8(4) 523-548
Bruce, Donald J., Celeste K. Carruthers, Matthew C. Harris, Matthew N. Murray and Jinseong Park (2019) “Do In-Kind Grants Stick? The Department of Defense 1033 program and local government spending.” Journal of Urban Economics (112), 111-121.
Harris, Matthew C. (2019) “The Impact of Body Weight on Occupational Mobility and Career Development” International Economic Review60(2), 631-660.
Harris, Matthew C. and Jennifer L. Kohn (2018). “Reference Health and the Demand for Medical Care.” The Economic Journal 128, 2812-2842.
Harris, Matthew C., Jinseong Park, Donald J. Bruce, and Matthew N. Murray (2017). “Peacekeeping Force: Effects of Providing Tactical Equipment to Local Law Enforcement.” American Economic Journal: Economic Policy 9(3), 291-313.
Featured in Wall Street Journal, the Economist, Public Radio, and other news outlets.
Kim, Bongkyun, Celeste K. Carruthers, and Matthew C. Harris. (2017). “Maternal Stress and Birth Outcomes: Evidence from the 1994 Northridge Earthquake.” Journal of Economic Behavior and Organization140, 354-373.
Harris, Matthew C. (2017). “Imperfect Information on Physical Activity and Caloric Intake.” Economics and Human Biology 26(1), 112-125.
Harris, Matthew C. and Christopher J. Cronin (2017). “The Effects of Prospective Mate Characteristics on Investment in Health Capital Among Single Women.” Economics and Human Biology 24(2), 164-183.
PUBLICATIONS IN NON-ECONOMICS JOURNALS
Peter, Samuel C., James G. Murphy, Katie Witkiewitz, Sarah B. Hand, Fridtjof Thomas, Karen C. Johnson, Ronald Cowan, Matthew C Harris, and Karen J. Derefinko (2023). “Use of a sequential multiple assignment randomized trial to test contingency management and an integrated behavioral economic and mindfulness intervention for buprenorphine-naloxone medication adherence for opioid use disorder” Trials 24 (no. 237).
Karen J Derefinko, Fridtjof Thomas, Samuel C Peter, James G Murphy, Katie Witkiewitz, Ron Cowan, Matthew C. Harris, Sarah Hand, Karen C Johnson (2025) “A randomized pilot trial of two forms of behavioral economics intervention to improve adherence to buprenorphine-naloxone among patients with opioid use disorder.” Drug and Alcohol Dependence 268 (112584).
WORKING PAPERS
Optimal Taxation under Dual Atmospheric-Consumption Externalities (with Enda Hargaden) (Under review)
Transparency, Culture, Police Militarization and the Killing of Citizens (with Eunsik Chang, Diego Guerrero) (Under Revision)
What’s one more star in a field full of them? The effect of a marginal star rating for college football recruits (with Michael Charysh and Celeste Carruthers)
The Impact of Police Violence on Domestic Violence Reporting (with Adrienne Sudbury)
Legalizing Fentanyl Test Streps and Preventing Overdose Deaths (with Larry Kessler and Linnea Endersby)
WORKS IN PROGRESS
Consumption Smoothing and Criminal Activity: Evidence from Payday Lending restrictions (with Cora Bennett)
The 2013 Reauthorization of the Violence Against Women Act and Sexual Assaults on Campus (with Michael Charysh and Celeste Carruthers)
BOOK CHAPTERS AND RESEARCH REPORTS
Harris, MC and Pratt, EK “The Impact of TennCare: A Survey of Recipients, 2024” Boyd Center Economic Reports
Harris, MC and Kessler, LK. “The Economic Impact of Undergraduate Medical Education at UTHSC College of Medicine, Knoxville. Boyd Center Economic Reports.
Harris, MC. “A Population Forecast for the State of Tennessee. 2023 Launch”
Harris, MC and Pratt, EK. “The Economic Costs of Child Maltreatment in Tennessee” Prepared for Tennessee Commission on Children and Youth.
Harris, MC. “A Population Forecast for the State of Tennessee. 2021 Launch”
Harris, MC. “State of the Labor Market in Tennessee.” In An Economic Report to the Governor of Tennessee, 2022
Harris, MC and Pratt, EK. “An Economic Assessment of TennCare Expansion in 2022” Prepared for Tennessee Hospital Administration.
Harris, MC and Endersby, L. “A Comparison of Health and Economic Indicators in Knoxville to Peer Cities” Boyd Center Economic Reports.
Crook, T.R., Lerman, M.P. and Harris, M.C. “Getting Aligned: The Benefits of Integrating Market, Environmental, Social, and Political Strategies Within the Organization.” Achieving Supply Chain Integration: Connecting the Supply Chain Inside and Out for Competitive advantage. Mark Moon and Chad W. Autry, ed. Pearson Education, 2016
Harris, M.C. and K. Cahill “Public Health and Economic Wellbeing in Tennessee.” In An Economic Report to the Governor of the State of Tennessee. January, 2020
Harris, M.C. “Pending Retirements and Expected Human Capital Losses in Tennessee.” In An Economic Report to the Governor of the State of Tennessee. January, 2017
Harris, M.C. “Tennessee’s Labor Market, Before and After the Great Recession.” In An Economic Report to the Governor of the State of Tennessee. January, 2015
Harris, M.C., Fox, W.F., and Murray, M.N. “Who Benefits Under Insure Tennessee?” Boyd Center for Business and Economic Research Reports.
Harris, M.C. and Fox, W.F. “Exploring the Historic Low Unemployment Claims in Tennessee” Boyd Center for Business and Economic Research Reports.
Harris, M.C. “The Effects of Workforce Development Programs on Employment and Wages in Tennessee.” Boyd Center for Business and Economic Research Reports.
INVITED SEMINARS AND CONFERENCE PRESENTATIONS
2025: San Diego State University, Annual Health Econometrics Workshop (National Organizer), American Society for Health Economics
2024: Annual Health Econometrics Workshop (National Organizer), Southeastern Micro Labor Workshop, Farm Bureau Insurance Annual Actuarial Conference (Park City, UT)
2023: Annual Health Econometrics Workshop (National Organizer), Southeastern Micro Labor Workshop, Farm Bureau Insurance Annual Actuarial Conference
2023: International Health Economics Association, Annual Health Econometrics Workshop (National Organizer)
2022: Johns Hopkins University, Southern Economic Association, Annual Health Econometrics Workshop (National Organizer)
2021: Bureau of Economic Analysis, American Society for Health Economics, Annual Health Econometrics Workshop (National Organizer), Southern Economics Association
2020: University of Georgia, American Society for Health Economics, Southern Economics Association, Annual Health Econometrics Workshop (National Organizer),
2019: University of Notre Dame, University of Kentucky, International Health Economics Association, American Health Econometrics Workshop (host), Southeastern Health Economics Study Group (host), American Society for Health Economics (DC), Carolina Region Empirical Economics Day (UNC-CH)
2018: University of California at Merced, Claremont McKenna College, Atlanta Federal Reserve, University of Colorado – Denver, Middle Tennessee State University, American Society for Health Economics (Emory University).
2017: New York University, Tulane University, International Health Economics Association; Vanderbilt Empirical Applied Microeconomics Workshop.
2016: Emory University, South Carolina/Clemson Applied Micro Day, Tennessee Empirical Applied Microeconomics Festival, Southern Economics Association, American Society for Health Economics (University of Pennsylvania), American Health Economics Conference (Vanderbilt University)
2015: Vanderbilt University, International Health Economics Association (Bocconi University), American Health Economics Conference (University of Georgia), Society of Labor Economists, Southeastern Health Economics Study Group (Atlanta Federal Reserve), Southern Economics Association
2014: University of South Carolina, American Health Econometrics Workshop (University of Toronto), Southeastern Health Economics Study Group (Florida State Univ.), American Society of Health Economists (University of Southern California), Southern Economics Association
2013: Southern Economic Association, American Health Economics Conference, Southeastern Health Economics Study Group, University of Tennessee, Clemson University, Rice University, Bureau of Labor Statistics, Mathematica Policy Research, Research Triangle Institute, Middle Tennessee State University.
ADDITIONAL PROFESSIONAL EXPERIENCE
Executive Recruiter, Starbridge Group, March 2003-July 2008
Associate Director of Marketing, Corporate Executive Board, September 2001-March 2003
TEACHING
Graduate Courses
- Managerial Economics – Physicians Executive MBA – University of Tennessee 2025
- Managerial Economics – EMBA Healthcare Leadership – University of Tennessee 2025
- Managerial Economics – Physicians Executive MBA – University of Tennessee 2024
- Managerial Economics – EMBA Healthcare Leadership – University of Tennessee 2024
- Public Economics II – University of Tennessee – 2024
- Managerial Economics – Physicians Executive MBA – University of Tennessee 2023
- Managerial Economics – EMBA Healthcare Leadership – University of Tennessee 2023
- Managerial Economics – Physicians Executive MBA – University of Tennessee 2022
- Managerial Economics – EMBA Healthcare Leadership – University of Tennessee 2022
- Public Economics II – University of Tennessee – 2022
- Managerial Economics – EMBA Healthcare Leadership – University of Tennessee 2021
- Public Economics II – University of Tennessee – 2020
- Econometrics I – University of Tennessee 2014 -2019
- Managerial Economics, Duke University Fuqua School of Business GEMBA Program, Shanghai
- Managerial Economics, Duke University Fuqua School of Business and Nazarbayev University Graduate School of Business EMBA; Astana, Kazakhstan 2017
- Managerial Economics, Duke University Fuqua School of Business and Nazarbayev University Graduate School of Business Full-time MBA; Astana, Kazakhstan 2014
Undergraduate Courses
- Health Economics – University of Tennessee 2020. 2022. 2024
- Labor Economics – University of Tennessee 2013
- Econometrics – University of North Carolina 2011
- Principles of Economics – University of North Carolina 2010
ADVISING
Bongkyun Kim – 2016 – Committee Member, University of Arkansas
Jing Li – 2016 – Committee Member, University of Arkansas at Little Rock
Corbin Fox – Committee Member, James Madison University
Ryan Farley – Committee Member, University of Tennessee
Jerome Conley – Committee Member
Yancheng Xiao – Chair, Fudan University
Yinan Liu – Chair, Advance247 Financial
Benjamin Meadows – 2020 – Committee Member, University of Alabama at Birmingham
Adrienne Sudbury – 2020 – Committee Member, Longwood University
Cora Bennett – 2021 – Committee Member, University of Notre Dame (Lecturer)
Eunsik Chang – 2021 – Chair, Mississippi State University
Richard Beem – 2022 – Committee Member, U.S. Census Bureau
Bokseong Jeong – 2022 – Committee Member, California ISO
Haileab Hilafu – 2022 – Committee Member
Yaojin Sun – 2022 – Committee Member
Michael Charysh – 2023 – Chair
Diego Guerrero – 2024 – Committee Member
Linnea Endersby – 2026 – Chair
Debanjali Dasgupta – 2026 – Chair
Kaden Grace – 2027 Chair
UNDERGRAD THESIS ADVING
Lily Wetherell – 2025 Chair
Jack Duncan – 2024 Chair
Joshua Mauk – 2024 Chair
Camryn Oneidas – 2023 Chair
Matthew Seward – 2021 Chair
Christian Gates – 2020 Chair
Grace Malone – 2019 Chair
Lauren Forbidussi – 2018 Chair
REFEREE ACTIVITY
Review of Economics and Statistics, JPE Micro, The Economic Journal, International Economic Review, Journal of the European Economic Association, American Economic Journal: Economic Policy, Journal of Health Economics, Journal of Economic Behavior & Organization, Journal of Human Resources, Health Economics, Economics of Education Review, Journal of Law and Economics, Economic Inquiry, Economics and Human Biology, American Journal of Public Health, Southern Economic Journal, BMJ Open, Review of Black Political Economy, Violence and Gender, Labour Economics
HONORS AND AWARDS
Qualls Award for Outstanding Instructor in Economics, 2025
EMBA-HL Outstanding Instructor, 2024; Haslam College of Business
EMBA-HL Outstanding Instructor, 2022; Haslam College of Business
Michael Stahl PEMBA Faculty Fellowship, University of Tennessee, 2017-2019
Michael Stahl PEMBA Faculty Fellowship, University of Tennessee, 2019-2021
Haslam College of Business Summer Research Fellow (2018)
Haslam College of Business Summer Research Fellow (2019)
Haslam College of Business Summer Research Fellow (2020)
Haslam College of Business Summer Research Fellow (2021)
UNIVERSITY SERVICE
University of Tennessee Faculty Senator (2018-present)
Co-SEC and NCAA Faculty Athletics Representative (2020-present)
PROFESSIONAL SERVICE
Co-Editor Southern Economic Journal June 2021-July 2024
Associate Editor, Health Economics, March 2022-present
National Organizer for Annual Health Econometrics Workshop 2019-Present
Matthew C Harris 