The Economic Science Association (ESA) has announced its 2025 Award Winners, together with its newest fellows.

In an email to members the Economic Science Association has announced its three 2025 awards, as well as the five scholars named as its most recent fellows. The email was shared by Alvin Roth on his Market Design blog, and by the University of Pittsburgh, a faculty member of which, Lise Vesterlund, was elected as a fellow.

We are delighted to announce the recipients of the 2025 ESA Awards and the newest Fellows of the Economic Science Association. These awards recognize those who have made outstanding contributions to our field through research, service, mentoring, and leadership:

2025 ESA Distinguished Service Award
This award honours those who have played an exceptional role in the administration and growth of the ESA over the course of their careers. In 2025, we are proud to recognize two extraordinary recipients:

Professor Yan Chen
Professor Chen served as ESA President from 2015–2017. She established our mentoring program and served as the Director of the ESA Mentoring Program, a role she held until 2024. Through her efforts, hundreds of early career researchers have benefited from mentorship panels, helping to shape the next generation of experimental economists.

Professor Catherine Eckel
Professor Eckel served as ESA President from 2017–2019. Among her many contributions, she played a foundational role in establishing our ethics program, becoming ESA’s first Ethics Officer. She has been a dedicated mentor and advocate for junior scholars. Her leadership has been instrumental in making ESA a more inclusive and welcoming community for researchers at all stages of their careers.

2025 ESA Young Scholar Prize
This prize recognizes a young scholar whose work has made a significant methodological contribution to experimental economics. Candidates must either be under the age of 40, hold an untenured position, or be within 10 years of completing graduate school. We are thrilled to announce the 2025 recipient:
Professor Christine Exley
Professor Exley is recognized for her research on motivated reasoning, charitable giving, and gender. Her work stands out for its innovative experimental designs, pushing the boundaries of how we study behaviour in complex social contexts.

2025 ESA Prize for Exceptional Achievement
This award honours a researcher who has overcome unusually challenging circumstances to make impactful contributions to experimental economics. We are very pleased to announce that the 2025 award goes to:
Professor Erin Krupka
Professor Krupka is widely known for her impressive work on social norms, including the development of incentivized norm elicitation techniques that have become a cornerstone in the field.

2025 ESA Fellows
The designation of ESA fellow is intended to recognize the lifetime contributions of ESA members who have advanced the frontier of knowledge in economics through the use of laboratory and/or field experiments. The designation of an individual as an ESA fellow is intended as a permanent recognition of their contribution to experimental science and to economics. We are delighted to welcome the following distinguished Professors as the 2025 ESA Fellows:

• Mark Isaac
• Rosemarie Nagel
• Robert Sugden
• Lise Vesterlund
• James Walker

Their body of work has significantly shaped experimental economics and will continue to inspire researchers across generations.

The awardees and Fellows were selected by the 2025 ESA’s Awards and Fellows Committee. 

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