Rutger van Bergem

Rutger van Bergem is currently a PhD student in the economics program at George Mason University and was a Mercatus Center Research Assistant during the 2013-2014 academic year. He holds an MSc and BSc in systems engineering, policy analysis and management at the Technical University of Delft in the Netherlands, as well as a BSc in psychology at the University of Leiden and a BA in philosophy at Erasmus University in Rotterdam. His dissertation focuses on the effects of regulatory and legal frictions (especially concerning the institutions dealing with bankruptcy, M&A and entry) on macroeconomic cycles. His other academic interests include philosophy and economics (specifically philosophical pragmatism and economics) and teaching.