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Biography
I am an applied economist with a passion for conducting economic and interdisciplinary research that generates practical insights for addressing real-world challenges. My primary research areas are development economics and the economics of education, with additional interests in health economics, labor economics, and public economics. Much of my research focuses on poorer regions in developing countries, such as rural areas in China and Ethiopia. My work often involves analyzing micro-level experimental or observational data to evaluate the impacts of intervention programs and policy changes. My research has been published in leading peer-reviewed journals, including the Economics of Education Review, Education Economics, Journal of Development Economics, Journal of Development Studies, Journal of Public Economics, Pacific Economic Review, Review of Development Economics, and World Development.
I am deeply committed to teaching economics and inspiring students to explore the economy and society through rigorous reasoning, scientific methods, and biblical integration. Currently, I teach three of the four required intermediate and upper-level courses for Economics majors, including Intermediate Microeconomics, Econometrics, and the Economics Senior Seminar.
Before joining Wheaton, I spent six years teaching in Hong Kong at Lingnan University, where I also served as the warden of an on-campus student dormitory for three years. I am married to my wife, Flora, and we are blessed with four children.
Education
Ph.D., Economics, Stanford University, 2012
M.A., Economics, Stanford University, 2008
B.A., Economics and Mathematics (double major) with Political Science minor, UCLA, 2005
Courses Taught
- Intermediate Microeconomics
- Economic Growth and Development
- Econometrics
- Senior Seminar
Areas of Expertise
Primary: Development Economics, Economics of Education
Secondary: Health Economics, Labor Economics, Public Economics
Selected Publications
Xiang Zhou, Ho Lun Wong, Xiangdong Wei, and William Stanley Siebert. 2024. Improving the Teacher Feedback Process in Primary Education: Evidence from Randomized Controlled Trials in Schools in Rural China. Education Economics, forthcoming.
Ho Lun Wong and Haftom Bayray Kahsay. 2023. Risk Preference Interactions Between Individual Farmers and Small Farmer Groups: Experimental Evidence from Rural Ethiopia. Review of Development Economics, 27(2), 1157-1176.
Ho Lun Wong. 2021. Effect of Marriage Registration on Fertility and Intrahousehold Distribution in Thailand. Pacific Economic Review, 26(3), 312–338.
Ho Lun Wong, Xiangdong Wei, Haftom Bayray Kahsay, Zenebe Gebreegziabher, Cornelis Gardebroek, Daniel E. Osgood, and Rahel Diro. 2020. Effects of input vouchers and rainfall insurance on agricultural production and household welfare: Experimental evidence from Northern Ethiopia. World Development, 135, #105074.
Ho Lun Wong, Wang Yu, Renfu Luo, Linxiu Zhang, and Scott Rozelle. 2017. Local Governance and the Quality of Local Infrastructure: Evidence from Village Road Projects in Rural China. Journal of Public Economics, 152, 119–132.
Ho Lun Wong, Yaojing Shi, Renfu Luo, Linxiu Zhang, and Scott Rozelle. 2014. Improving the Health and Education of Elementary Schoolchildren in Rural China: Iron Supplementation versus Nutritional Training for Parents. Journal of Development Studies 50(4), 502–519.
Ho Lun Wong, Renfu Luo, Linxiu Zhang, and Scott Rozelle. 2013. The Impact of Vouchers on Preschool Attendance and Elementary School Readiness: A Randomized Controlled Trial in Rural China. Economics of Education Review 35, 53–65.
Ho Lun Wong, Renfu Luo, Linxiu Zhang, and Scott Rozelle. 2013. Providing Quality Infrastructure in Rural Villages: The Case of Rural Roads in China. Journal of Development Economics 103, 262–274.