Rong Rong
Rong Rong is a Ph.D. candidate in the Interdisciplinary Center for Economic Science (ICES) at George Mason University. Before arriving at George Mason, Ms. Rong studied economics at Shanghai Jiaotong University for four years. During this time she worked as a research assistant at the Smith Experimental Economics Research Center (SEERC), the first laboratory for experimental economics in China founded by Nobel Laureate Dr. Vernon Smith.
Ms. Rong’s academic interests range from behavioral economics to applied microeconomic theory, but the focus of her research is the study of social networks. Ms. Rong uses field and laboratory experiments to analyze the formation of social networks and the effects they have on society. Her goal is to determine how to foster the conditions that facilitate the positive effects of networks and then use that information to achieve better economic outcomes.
In her current research, Ms. Rong uses laboratory experiments to find out how networks spread information. In one study, for instance, she shows that social identity encourages the formation of truth-telling networks. Ms. Rong has been published in the Review of International Economics and is currently working on her dissertation.
Academics are not her only passion, however. Ms. Rong’s extracurricular interests immerse her in nature through activities like hiking and scuba diving. She also is very adept at Chinese seal carving—an ancient art that combines calligraphy with engraving.