Campbell, JohnWu, Alex Alexis2026-06-0920262026-05-122026Wu, Alex Alexis. 2026. Essays in Financial Economics. Doctoral Dissertation, Harvard University Graduate School of Arts and Sciences.32700360https://dash.harvard.edu/handle/1/42740237This dissertation is composed of three essays in financial economics, which share a common focus on the determinants of managerial and corporate decision-making. The first essay studies the growing role of politics in consumer markets by measuring consumer demand for political tilt and examining its implications for firm behavior. The second essay studies how benchmarking incentives shape crowded risk-taking in the context of mutual fund managers investing in cryptocurrencies. The third essay studies pharmaceutical firms facing losses of exclusivity, and examines the role of managerial reference points in responses to large and predictable revenue declines.application/pdfenFinanceEconomicsThesis or Dissertation2026-06-090009-0008-6855-8277