Faculty Profile

Education: Whitworth University, BA, 2002; University of Hawaii at Manoa, MA, 2006; University of Hawaii, PhD, 2010. At SPU since 2010.

Geri Mason completed her doctorate in economics in 2010, receiving several academic honors. Her fields of research interest include development economics, microfinance/financial inclusion, and poverty. Dr. Mason's teaching specialties are development economics and undergraduate capstone research.

Dr. Mason’s research focuses on the economics of microfinance and development, encompassing current debates in microfinance. Articulating her passion for poverty and economic development, parallel research examines methodologies for integrating poverty into management education, particularly through economics. Her interest in microfinance and economic development as a means for poverty alleviation stems from a passion to impact the poor in developing nations, and is strengthened by her faith and global encounters.

Before coming to SPU, Dr. Mason taught at her home institution, the University of Hawaii, and spent a year teaching at the University of Puget Sound, while completing her doctorate. Her research focuses on the economics of microfinance and development, encompassing current debates in microfinance. Articulating her passion for poverty and economic development, her research examines the group lending methodology and the potential impact of its introduction into a rural financial market. In addition, Dr. Mason explores the use of technology for financial capital accumulation in microfinance. Her research also encompasses the challenges and innovations surrounding microfinance in China, and the impact of the political economy of China on the Chinese microfinance industry. This interest in microfinance and economic development as a means for poverty alleviation stems from a passion to impact the poor in developing nations, and was strengthened by her travels in China. 

Selected Publications

• "Individual Preferences Over Development Projects: Evidence From Microlending on Kiva." With Pierre Ly, VOLUNTAS: International Journal of Voluntary and Nonprofit Organizations, 23 (4) (2012): 1036–1055.
• "Competition Between Microfinance NGOs: Evidence From Kiva." With Pierre Ly, World Development, 40 (3) (2012): 643–655.
• "Review of Nurul Islam’s Reducing Poverty in Rural Asia: Challenges and Opportunities for Microenterprises and Public Employment Schemes." New York: Haworth Press, 2006. With Jim Roumasset, Economic Development and Cultural Change, 57(2): 418–426. 2009.
• Mason, G. & Rosenbloom, A. Poverty as a legitimate management topic: The student voice. The International Journal of Management Education, Volume 21, Issue 3, November 2023, 100841.
• Poverty, vulnerability, and the role of responsible management education in a post-COVID world. With Al Rosenbloom. Journal of Global Responsibility: 13(1) (2022), 72-86.

Please view Dr. Mason's CV (PDF) for additional publications.

Social Media

Facebook: SPUProf GMason

Linkedin: geri@spu.edu

Twitter: @ProfGMason

Skype: geri.mason

Instagram: @profgmason