Daniel Murphy

Education: B.S., University of Notre Dame; M.A., University of Michigan; Ph.D., University of Michigan

Jung Family Associate Professor of Business Administration Daniel Murphy’s research centers on cost effective strategies to prevent and mitigate recessions while safeguarding sustainable public finances. His work blends theoretical and empirical methods, with particular emphasis on how policies affect different segments of society and on the interplay between housing markets and the broader macroeconomy.

A substantial share of Murphy’s scholarship analyzes the impact of Department of Defense spending on local economies. Using detailed regional data, he and his co authors document pervasive economic slack in the United States prior to the COVID 19 pandemic and show that, under such conditions, targeted government spending can meaningfully raise employment and incomes—especially for individuals with lower levels of formal education. Their findings also reveal broader social benefits, including reductions in mortality and disability.

Recognizing that elevated public debt levels often constrain the government’s capacity to deploy fiscal stimulus when it is most needed, Murphy develops theoretical mechanisms to combat recessions while minimizing debt growth. His work investigates how the effectiveness of these strategies depends on the nature of a downturn and on the extent of authority delegated to central banks.

Murphy also examines how policy choices shape the well being of low income households. For instance, while monetary expansions can spur employment, they may simultaneously increase housing costs. His research demonstrates that housing market booms tend to amplify housing expenses for low income households, underscoring the need to weigh employment gains against shifting housing burdens when evaluating expansionary policies.

Beyond macroeconomic stabilization, Murphy explores how consumer spending patterns evolve and how home size and residential density influence consumption, interest rates, and policy effectiveness. He further investigates efficient and equitable approaches to raising public revenue, with a particular focus on land taxation, assessing both the effects of land value taxes and potential implementation challenges.