Mark A. Cohen
Justin Potter Professor of American Competitive Enterprise, Emeritus
University Fellow, Resources for the Future
Biography
Biography
Mark Cohen is a leading expert on environmental regulation and disclosure policies, as well as corporate crime and punishment. His extensive career in academia and the private and public sectors has seen him publish over 100 articles and books on a wide variety of topics, serve in several capacities within the Federal Government, and consult with major corporations.
Impact
Professor Cohen’s 2001 paper with Shameek Konar – Does the Market Value Environmental Performance? – was cited as one of the 75 seminal and most influential articles in the field of Business and the Natural Environment. Google Scholar lists him as the most cited researcher on the topics of White Collar and Corporate Crime.
Teaching
At Vanderbilt, Cohen teaches Corporate Strategies for Environmental, Social & Governance (ESG) Issues; Law and Business of Climate Change; Strategic Business Solutions to Address Structural Racism; and an international project course, Doing Business in Israel.
Research Interests
Professor Cohen’s research tracks are extremely diverse. Themes broadly focus on law and economics - including environmental and criminal justice issues, with topics including why firms reduce toxic chemical emissions, cost-benefit analysis of oil spill regulation and enforcement; racial disparity in the auto lending industry; and the cost of crime.
Education
B.S.F.S., International Economics, Georgetown University, 1978
M.A., Economics, Carnegie-Mellon University, 1983
Ph.D., Economics, Carnegie-Mellon University, 1985
Select Publications
Articles
The Impact of Team Inspections on Enforcement and Deterrence.
Muehlenbachs,
Lucija, Stefan Staubli, and Mark A. Cohen (2016). “The Impact of Team
Inspections on Enforcement and Deterrence.”
Journal of the Association of Environmental and Resource Economists,
vol. 3(1): 159-204.
Willingness to Pay to Reduce White Collar and Corporate Crime
Cohen, Mark A. (2015). “Willingness to Pay to Reduce
White Collar and Corporate Crime,” Journal of Benefit-Cost Analysis,
vol. 6 (2): 305-24, doi:10.1017/bca.2015.43
The Evolution Of Corporate Criminal Settlements: An Empirical Perspective On Non-Prosecution, Deferred Prosecution, and Plea Agreements
Alexander,
Cindy R. and Mark A. Cohen (2015). “The Evolution Of Corporate Criminal
Settlements: An Empirical Perspective On Non-Prosecution, Deferred Prosecution,
and Plea Agreements,” American Criminal Law Review, vol. 52 (3): 537-93.
The Porter Hypothesis at 20: Can Environmental Regulation Enhance Innovation and Competitiveness?
Ambec, Stefan, Mark A.
Cohen, Stewart Elgie, and Paul Lanoie. (2013). “The Porter Hypothesis at 20:
Can Environmental Regulation Enhance Innovation and Competitiveness?” Review of Environmental Economics &
Policy vol. 7, issue 1, pp. 2-22.
The Potential Role of Carbon Labeling in a Green Economy
Cohen, Mark A. and Michael
P. Vandenbergh. (2012). “The Potential Role of Carbon Labeling in a Green
Economy,” Energy Economics, vol. 34: S53-63.
Imperfect Competition in Auto Lending: Subjective Markups, Racial Disparity, and Class Action Litigation
Cohen, Mark A. (2012).
“Imperfect Competition in Auto Lending: Subjective Markups, Racial Disparity,
and Class Action Litigation.” Review of Law and Economics vol. 8, no. 1
(21-58).
The Role of Information Disclosure in Climate Mitigation Policy
Cohen, Mark
A. and W. Kip Viscusi. (2012). “The Role of Information Disclosure in Climate
Mitigation Policy,” Climate Change Economics vol. 3, no. 4, pp.
1250020:1-21.
How Much is the Public Willing to Pay to be Protected from Identity Theft
Piquero, Nicole
Leeper, Mark A. Cohen and Alex R. Piquero. (2010). “How Much is the Public
Willing to Pay to be Protected from Identity Theft?” Justice Quarterly 28(3):
437-58.
New Evidence on the Monetary Value of Saving a High Risk Youth
Cohen, Mark A. and Alex
Piquero. “New Evidence on the Monetary Value of Saving a High Risk Youth.”
(2009). Journal of Quantitative Criminology. 25(1): 25-49.
Prevention, Crime Control or Cash? Public Preferences towards Criminal Justice Spending Priorities,
Cohen, Mark A., Roland T. Rust, and Sara Steen, "Prevention, Crime Control or Cash? Public Preferences towards Criminal Justice Spending Priorities," Justice Quarterly (2006).
The Costs of Crime and Justice.
Cohen, Mark A. The Costs of Crime and Justice (New York, NY: Routledge, 2005); ISBN 0-415-70072-8 (hardback), 0-415-70073-6 (paperback).
Willingness-to-Pay for Crime Control Programs
Cohen, Mark A., Roland Rust, Sara Steen, and Simon Tidd, "Willingness-to-Pay for Crime Control Programs." Criminology 42(1): 86-106 (February 2004).
Determinants of Environmental Innovation in U.S. Manufacturing Industries
Brunnermeier, Smita and Mark A. Cohen, "Determinants of Environmental Innovation in U.S. Manufacturing Industries," Journal of Environmental Economics and Management 45(2): 278-93 (March 2003).
Does the Market Value Environmental Performance?
Konar, Shameek and Mark A. Cohen, "Does the Market Value Environmental Performance?" Review of Economics and Statistics 83 (2): 281-9 (May 2001).
Why do Corporations Become Criminals?
Alexander, Cindy R. and Mark A. Cohen, "Why do Corporations Become Criminals? Ownership, Hidden Actions, and Crime as an Agency Cost," Journal of Corporate Finance, 5 (1): 1-34 (March 1999).
The Monetary Value of Saving a High Risk Youth
Cohen, Mark A. "The Monetary Value of Saving a High Risk Youth," Journal of Quantitative Criminology, 14 (1): 5-33 (1998).
Information As Regulation: The Effect of Community Right to Know Laws on Toxic Emissions
Konar, Shameek and Mark A. Cohen, "Information As Regulation: The Effect of Community Right to Know Laws on Toxic Emissions," Journal of Environmental Economics and Management, 32(1): 109-124 (1997).
Environmental Crime and Punishment: Legal/Economic Theory and Empirical Evidence on Enforcement of Federal Environmental Statutes
Cohen, Mark
A. "Environmental Crime and Punishment: Legal/Economic Theory and
Empirical Evidence on Enforcement of Federal Environmental Statutes," Journal
of Criminal Law and Criminology 82 (3): 1054-1108 (1992).
The Motives of Judges: Empirical Evidence from Antitrust Sentencing
Cohen, Mark
A. "The Motives of Judges: Empirical Evidence from Antitrust
Sentencing," International Review of Law and Economics 12: 13-30
(1992).
Corporate Crime and Punishment: An Update on Sentencing Practice in the Federal Courts
Cohen, Mark
A. "Corporate Crime and Punishment: An Update on Sentencing Practice in
the Federal Courts, 1988-1990," Boston University Law Review, 71
(2): 247-80 (March 1991).
Pain, Suffering, and Jury Awards
Cohen, Mark
A. "Pain, Suffering, and Jury Awards: A study of the Cost of Crime to
Victims," Law and Society Review, vol. 22, no. 3, 1988, pp.
537-555.
Optimal Enforcement Strategy to Prevent Oil Spills: An Application of a Principal-Agent Model with 'Moral Hazard'
Cohen, Mark
A. "Optimal Enforcement Strategy to Prevent Oil Spills: An Application of
a Principal-Agent Model with 'Moral Hazard'," Journal of Law and
Economics, vol. 30, no. 1, 23-51 (April 1987).
The Costs and Benefits of Oil Spill Prevention and Enforcement
Cohen, Mark
A. "The Costs and Benefits of Oil Spill Prevention and
Enforcement," Journal of
Environmental Economics and Management, vol. 13, 167-88 (1986).
The Impact of Environmental Regulation on Firm and Country Competitiveness: A Meta-Analysis of the Porter Hypothesis
Cohen, Mark A. and Adeline Tubb (forthcoming). “The
Impact of Environmental Regulation on Firm and Country Competitiveness: A
Meta-Analysis of the Porter Hypothesis.” Journal of the Association of
Environmental and Resource Economists.
