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This research review discusses and analyses a unique collection of key publications at the intersection of biology and economics, two disciplines that share a common subject: Homo sapiens. Beginning with Thomas Malthus— whose dire predictions of mass starvation due to population growth influenced Charles Darwin— economists have routinely used biological arguments in their models and methods. The review summarizes the most important of these developments in areas such as sociobiology, evolutionary psychology, behavioral ecology, behavioral economics and finance, neuroeconomics, and behavioral genomics. This research review will be an indispensable tool for economists, biologists, and practitioners looking to develop a deeper understanding of the limits of Homo economicus.

The interdisciplinary field of economics and religion has come a long way since 2003 when Edward Elgar published the pioneering volume Economics and Religion. The influence of religious ideas on the birth of economics as a discipline and its rise to cultural dominance is now widely recognized. The largely Protestant discussion has been enriched by Roman Catholic contributions stimulated by recent Papal Encyclicals. The economics of religion has now matured into a respectable subfield of economics and articles on religion regularly appear in top economics journals. This original and insightful research review places the most recent contributions in context and will be an invaluable resource for scholars and academics alike.

This research review brings together major contributions to the study of finance and growth. It considers conceptual and empirical papers that use a range of methodologies to discover the connections between financial systems——including financial contracts, markets, and intermediaries——and the functioning of the economy——including economic growth, entrepreneurship, technological innovation, poverty alleviation, the distribution of income, and the structure and volatility of economies. It also discusses contributions to the study of the legal, political, institutional, social capital and policy determinants of financial development.