Markus was formerly an Associate Professor of economics at Harvard University. He received his PhD from MIT in 2000 and previously earned an M.Phil in economics and a B.A. in mathematics from Oxford University. His main research agenda deals with the economics of social networks. On the theory side, Markus builds models of learning, coordination and cooperation within social networks. He is particularly interested in how social networks can generate trust. On the empirical side, he uses a combination of lab and field experiments with real social networks to estimate these models. In a second line of research, Markus has explored how people manage their self-confidence when ego is at stake. Recently, he has used browsing data to analyze the economics of online news consumption.