Origins & Early Life

Andrew Michael Spence (born November 7, 1943) is a Canadian-American economist and Nobel laureate. Spence is the William R. Berkley Professor in Economics and Business at the Stern School of Business at New York University, and the Philip H. Knight Professor of Management, Emeritus, and Dean, Emeritus, at the Stanford Graduate School of Business.

Pivotal Works & Achievements

Together with George A. Akerlof and Joseph E. Stiglitz, Spence is a co-recipient of the 2001 Nobel Memorial Prize in Economic Sciences, "for their analyses of markets with asymmetric information." Spence is noted for his job-market signaling model, which inspired research into this branch of contract theory. In this model, employees signal their respective skills to employers by acquiring a certain degree of education, which is costly to them. Employers will pay higher wages to more educated employees, because they know that the proportion of employees with high abilities is higher among the educated ones, as it is less costly for them to acquire education than it is for employees with low abilities.

Enduring Legacy & Impact

For the model to work, it is not even necessary for education to have any intrinsic value if it can convey information about the...

Contemporary Figures & Related Historical Timelines

• Alvy Ray Smith — Contemporary (Born in 1943) (1943): Pioneering computer scientist and co-founder of Pixar Animation Studios.
• Antonio Inoki — Contemporary (Born in 1943) (1943): Pioneering Japanese wrestler, martial artist, and political figure.
• Arthur Ashe — Contemporary (Born in 1943) (1943): Pioneering American tennis star, celebrated for his skill and activism.
• Albert Camus — Shared historical date (11-07 · Born) (1913): Philosopher and writer known for Absurdism, The Stranger, and The Plague.
• Alexander Dubček — Shared historical date (11-07 · Died) (1992): Slovak statesman known for leading the Prague Spring and advocating 'Socialism with a human face'.
• Arthur B. McDonald — Historical peer (Born in 1943) (1943): Pioneering Canadian astrophysicist, recognized for neutrino research and the 2015 Nobel Prize.
• Barry Manilow — Historical peer (Born in 1943) (1943): Enduring American singer, songwriter, and producer with a six-decade career.
• Aaliyah — Historical peer (Died in 2001) (2001): Pioneering R&B artist known for redefining urban pop and hip hop sounds.
• Ahmad Shah Massoud — Historical peer (Died in 2001) (2001): Afghan military leader, known as the "Lion of Panjshir", fought against foreign occupations.
• Alfred Russel Wallace — Shared historical date (11-07 · Died) (1913): Naturalist and explorer who independently conceived the theory of evolution.
• 1943 Historical Timeline & Archive — Explore world events and figures from 1943
• November 7 (11-07) On This Day — Historical birthdays and events on November 7