World's Best Scientists 2026 revealed!
Robert C. Merton

Robert C. Merton

D-Index & Metrics

Discipline name D-Index World Ranking Current World Ranking National Ranking Current National Ranking Publications Citations
Economics and Finance 69 472 422 311 272 193 92752

Robert C. Merton publications per year

The chart shows the history of publications by Robert C. Merton between 1966 and 2025, highlighting the no. of papers published in each year and offering an overview of the publication velocity of this scholar. Robert C. Merton published across 60 years, from 1966 to 2025, averaging 3.4 papers a year. Output peaked at 10 publications in 2011. 4 of the 205 publications appeared in the last two years.

No. of publications
2 4 6 8 10
Bar chart. Horizontal axis: year, 1966 to 2025. Vertical axis: number of publications, 0 to 10. Peak 10 publications in 2011. 1966: 1 publication 1967: 0 publications 1968: 0 publications 1969: 3 publications 1970: 2 publications 1971: 1 publication 1972: 1 publication 1973: 5 publications 1974: 2 publications 1975: 5 publications 1976: 2 publications 1977: 7 publications 1978: 2 publications 1979: 0 publications 1980: 1 publication 1981: 2 publications 1982: 3 publications 1983: 3 publications 1984: 3 publications 1985: 3 publications 1986: 0 publications 1987: 4 publications 1988: 1 publication 1989: 2 publications 1990: 4 publications 1991: 3 publications 1992: 6 publications 1993: 6 publications 1994: 1 publication 1995: 8 publications 1996: 1 publication 1997: 5 publications 1998: 1 publication 1999: 2 publications 2000: 1 publication 2001: 1 publication 2002: 4 publications 2003: 9 publications 2004: 5 publications 2005: 7 publications 2006: 9 publications 2007: 4 publications 2008: 4 publications 2009: 9 publications 2010: 5 publications 2011: 10 publications 2012: 3 publications 2013: 4 publications 2014: 2 publications 2015: 2 publications 2016: 3 publications 2017: 2 publications 2018: 3 publications 2019: 6 publications 2020: 10 publications 2021: 4 publications 2022: 2 publications 2023: 2 publications 2024: 3 publications 2025: 1 publication
1966 2025

205 publications in total across all disciplines

View publications per year as a table
Robert C. Merton: publications per year, 1966 to 2025
Year Publications
1966 1
1967 0
1968 0
1969 3
1970 2
1971 1
1972 1
1973 5
1974 2
1975 5
1976 2
1977 7
1978 2
1979 0
1980 1
1981 2
1982 3
1983 3
1984 3
1985 3
1986 0
1987 4
1988 1
1989 2
1990 4
1991 3
1992 6
1993 6
1994 1
1995 8
1996 1
1997 5
1998 1
1999 2
2000 1
2001 1
2002 4
2003 9
2004 5
2005 7
2006 9
2007 4
2008 4
2009 9
2010 5
2011 10
2012 3
2013 4
2014 2
2015 2
2016 3
2017 2
2018 3
2019 6
2020 10
2021 4
2022 2
2023 2
2024 3
2025 1
Total 205
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Robert C. Merton publications per year - data summary

  • Robert C. Merton, a Economics and Finance scholar from MIT, has 205 publications recorded across 60 years, from 1966 to 2025.
  • The oldest publication on record dates to 1966 and the most recent to 2025.
  • The most productive years are 2011 and 2020, with 10 publications each.
  • The least productive years with any output are 1966, 1971, 1972, 1980 and others, with 1 publication each.
  • 4 of the 60 years in the span carry no publications at all (1967, 1968, 1979 and 1986).
  • The rate of publication averages 3.4 papers per year over the whole span, or 3.7 per year counting only the 56 years with at least one publication.
  • The last 5 years on the chart (2021-2025) hold 12 publications, 6% of the career total.
  • Split into equal eras - 1966-1985: 46 publications (2.3 per year); 1986-2005: 71 publications (3.5 per year); 2006-2025: 88 publications (4.4 per year).
  • Comparing the opening and closing eras, the overall trend of publication is rising.

Robert C. Merton publication distribution in Economics and Finance in 2026

The chart shows the distribution of publications by all Research.com ranked scientists in the field of Economics and Finance in 2026. The highlighted bar marks where Robert C. Merton sits on this spectrum.

No. of scientists
25 50 75 100
Bar chart with 97 bars. Horizontal axis: publications, 42–46 to 521+. Vertical axis: number of scientists, 0 to 111. Most scientists, 111, have 137–141 publications. The last bar groups every scientist with 521 publications or more. The highlighted bar, 192–196 publications, is where this scientist sits. 42–46 publications: 1 scientist 47–51 publications: 12 scientists 52–56 publications: 7 scientists 57–61 publications: 23 scientists 62–66 publications: 32 scientists 67–71 publications: 36 scientists 72–76 publications: 56 scientists 77–81 publications: 57 scientists 82–86 publications: 70 scientists 87–91 publications: 86 scientists 92–96 publications: 72 scientists 97–101 publications: 106 scientists 102–106 publications: 97 scientists 107–111 publications: 96 scientists 112–116 publications: 101 scientists 117–121 publications: 103 scientists 122–126 publications: 102 scientists 127–131 publications: 108 scientists 132–136 publications: 107 scientists 137–141 publications: 111 scientists 142–146 publications: 94 scientists 147–151 publications: 96 scientists 152–156 publications: 100 scientists 157–161 publications: 74 scientists 162–166 publications: 68 scientists 167–171 publications: 91 scientists 172–176 publications: 76 scientists 177–181 publications: 75 scientists 182–186 publications: 61 scientists 187–191 publications: 66 scientists 192–196 publications: 68 scientists 197–201 publications: 71 scientists 202–206 publications: 60 scientists 207–211 publications: 56 scientists 212–216 publications: 44 scientists 217–221 publications: 51 scientists 222–226 publications: 65 scientists 227–231 publications: 48 scientists 232–236 publications: 59 scientists 237–241 publications: 37 scientists 242–246 publications: 37 scientists 247–251 publications: 41 scientists 252–256 publications: 43 scientists 257–261 publications: 33 scientists 262–266 publications: 34 scientists 267–271 publications: 39 scientists 272–276 publications: 25 scientists 277–281 publications: 29 scientists 282–286 publications: 29 scientists 287–291 publications: 26 scientists 292–296 publications: 31 scientists 297–301 publications: 31 scientists 302–306 publications: 24 scientists 307–311 publications: 28 scientists 312–316 publications: 24 scientists 317–321 publications: 13 scientists 322–326 publications: 14 scientists 327–331 publications: 25 scientists 332–336 publications: 18 scientists 337–341 publications: 16 scientists 342–346 publications: 18 scientists 347–351 publications: 15 scientists 352–356 publications: 17 scientists 357–361 publications: 19 scientists 362–366 publications: 16 scientists 367–371 publications: 17 scientists 372–376 publications: 7 scientists 377–381 publications: 18 scientists 382–386 publications: 13 scientists 387–391 publications: 19 scientists 392–396 publications: 9 scientists 397–401 publications: 10 scientists 402–406 publications: 13 scientists 407–411 publications: 13 scientists 412–416 publications: 5 scientists 417–421 publications: 10 scientists 422–426 publications: 6 scientists 427–431 publications: 12 scientists 432–436 publications: 9 scientists 437–441 publications: 9 scientists 442–446 publications: 10 scientists 447–451 publications: 12 scientists 452–456 publications: 8 scientists 457–461 publications: 4 scientists 462–466 publications: 7 scientists 467–471 publications: 4 scientists 472–476 publications: 5 scientists 477–481 publications: 6 scientists 482–486 publications: 7 scientists 487–491 publications: 8 scientists 492–496 publications: 5 scientists 497–501 publications: 4 scientists 502–506 publications: 4 scientists 507–511 publications: 5 scientists 512–516 publications: 7 scientists 517–520 publications: 7 scientists 521+ publications: 99 scientists
42–46 publications 521+

This scientist: 193 publications — 59th percentile

59% of scientists in this discipline score the same or lower.

The last bar groups every scientist with 521 publications or more.

View publications distribution as a table
Number of Economics and Finance scientists by publication count, Research.com 2026 ranking edition. Based on 3,760 ranked scientists.
Publications Scientists This scientist
42–46 1
47–51 12
52–56 7
57–61 23
62–66 32
67–71 36
72–76 56
77–81 57
82–86 70
87–91 86
92–96 72
97–101 106
102–106 97
107–111 96
112–116 101
117–121 103
122–126 102
127–131 108
132–136 107
137–141 111
142–146 94
147–151 96
152–156 100
157–161 74
162–166 68
167–171 91
172–176 76
177–181 75
182–186 61
187–191 66
192–196 68 193
197–201 71
202–206 60
207–211 56
212–216 44
217–221 51
222–226 65
227–231 48
232–236 59
237–241 37
242–246 37
247–251 41
252–256 43
257–261 33
262–266 34
267–271 39
272–276 25
277–281 29
282–286 29
287–291 26
292–296 31
297–301 31
302–306 24
307–311 28
312–316 24
317–321 13
322–326 14
327–331 25
332–336 18
337–341 16
342–346 18
347–351 15
352–356 17
357–361 19
362–366 16
367–371 17
372–376 7
377–381 18
382–386 13
387–391 19
392–396 9
397–401 10
402–406 13
407–411 13
412–416 5
417–421 10
422–426 6
427–431 12
432–436 9
437–441 9
442–446 10
447–451 12
452–456 8
457–461 4
462–466 7
467–471 4
472–476 5
477–481 6
482–486 7
487–491 8
492–496 5
497–501 4
502–506 4
507–511 5
512–516 7
517–520 7
521+ 99
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Robert C. Merton publication distribution in Economics and Finance in 2026 - data summary

  • The chart plots the publication count of all 3,760 Economics and Finance scientists ranked by Research.com in 2026, grouped into 97 ranges running from 42–46 to 521+ publications.
  • Robert C. Merton, a Economics and Finance scholar from MIT, records 193 publications - the 59th percentile of the discipline.
  • 59% of ranked Economics and Finance scientists score the same or lower than Robert C. Merton, and about 41% score higher.
  • The median of the discipline falls in the 167–171 publications range, and Robert C. Merton ranks above the median.
  • The most crowded range is 137–141 publications, holding 111 scientists (3% of the field).
  • 48% of the field sits in the lowest quarter of the value range (up to 162–166 publications), so the distribution leans towards the lower end of the scale.
  • The final bar has no upper bound: it groups every scientist with 521 publications or more, 99 scientists in all (3% of the field).

Robert C. Merton D-index placement in Economics and Finance in 2026

The chart shows the D-index (discipline H-index) distribution of Economics and Finance scientists ranked by Research.com in 2026. The highlighted bar marks where Robert C. Merton sits on this spectrum.

No. of scientists
50 100 150
Bar chart with 72 bars. Horizontal axis: D-Index, 30 to 101+. Vertical axis: number of scientists, 0 to 178. Most scientists, 178, have 33 D-Index. The last bar groups every scientist with 101 D-Index or more. The highlighted bar, 69 D-Index, is where this scientist sits. 30 D-Index: 126 scientists 31 D-Index: 147 scientists 32 D-Index: 157 scientists 33 D-Index: 178 scientists 34 D-Index: 171 scientists 35 D-Index: 141 scientists 36 D-Index: 132 scientists 37 D-Index: 129 scientists 38 D-Index: 130 scientists 39 D-Index: 120 scientists 40 D-Index: 117 scientists 41 D-Index: 113 scientists 42 D-Index: 114 scientists 43 D-Index: 97 scientists 44 D-Index: 115 scientists 45 D-Index: 86 scientists 46 D-Index: 78 scientists 47 D-Index: 83 scientists 48 D-Index: 62 scientists 49 D-Index: 74 scientists 50 D-Index: 50 scientists 51 D-Index: 66 scientists 52 D-Index: 69 scientists 53 D-Index: 55 scientists 54 D-Index: 67 scientists 55 D-Index: 61 scientists 56 D-Index: 62 scientists 57 D-Index: 45 scientists 58 D-Index: 34 scientists 59 D-Index: 47 scientists 60 D-Index: 46 scientists 61 D-Index: 36 scientists 62 D-Index: 37 scientists 63 D-Index: 56 scientists 64 D-Index: 50 scientists 65 D-Index: 32 scientists 66 D-Index: 28 scientists 67 D-Index: 30 scientists 68 D-Index: 24 scientists 69 D-Index: 25 scientists 70 D-Index: 22 scientists 71 D-Index: 21 scientists 72 D-Index: 26 scientists 73 D-Index: 24 scientists 74 D-Index: 23 scientists 75 D-Index: 12 scientists 76 D-Index: 14 scientists 77 D-Index: 15 scientists 78 D-Index: 15 scientists 79 D-Index: 17 scientists 80 D-Index: 17 scientists 81 D-Index: 11 scientists 82 D-Index: 10 scientists 83 D-Index: 16 scientists 84 D-Index: 11 scientists 85 D-Index: 5 scientists 86 D-Index: 9 scientists 87 D-Index: 13 scientists 88 D-Index: 9 scientists 89 D-Index: 7 scientists 90 D-Index: 6 scientists 91 D-Index: 4 scientists 92 D-Index: 8 scientists 93 D-Index: 10 scientists 94 D-Index: 11 scientists 95 D-Index: 6 scientists 96 D-Index: 4 scientists 97 D-Index: 4 scientists 98 D-Index: 6 scientists 99 D-Index: 6 scientists 100 D-Index: 8 scientists 101+ D-Index: 100 scientists
30 D-Index 101+

This scientist: 69 D-Index — 88th percentile

88% of scientists in this discipline score the same or lower.

The last bar groups every scientist with 101 D-Index or more.

View D-Index distribution as a table
Number of Economics and Finance scientists by D-index, Research.com 2026 ranking edition. Based on 3,760 ranked scientists.
D-Index Scientists This scientist
30 126
31 147
32 157
33 178
34 171
35 141
36 132
37 129
38 130
39 120
40 117
41 113
42 114
43 97
44 115
45 86
46 78
47 83
48 62
49 74
50 50
51 66
52 69
53 55
54 67
55 61
56 62
57 45
58 34
59 47
60 46
61 36
62 37
63 56
64 50
65 32
66 28
67 30
68 24
69 25 69
70 22
71 21
72 26
73 24
74 23
75 12
76 14
77 15
78 15
79 17
80 17
81 11
82 10
83 16
84 11
85 5
86 9
87 13
88 9
89 7
90 6
91 4
92 8
93 10
94 11
95 6
96 4
97 4
98 6
99 6
100 8
101+ 100
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Robert C. Merton D-index placement in Economics and Finance in 2026 - data summary

  • The chart plots the discipline H-index (D-index) of all 3,760 Economics and Finance scientists ranked by Research.com in 2026, grouped into 72 ranges running from 30 to 101+ D-Index.
  • Robert C. Merton, a Economics and Finance scholar from MIT, records 69 D-Index - the 88th percentile of the discipline.
  • 88% of ranked Economics and Finance scientists score the same or lower than Robert C. Merton, and about 12% score higher.
  • The median of the discipline falls in the 44 D-Index range, and Robert C. Merton ranks above the median.
  • The most crowded range is 33 D-Index, holding 178 scientists (5% of the field).
  • 59% of the field sits in the lowest quarter of the value range (up to 47 D-Index), so the distribution is heavily right-skewed and high scores are rare.
  • The final bar has no upper bound: it groups every scientist with 101 D-Index or more, 100 scientists in all (3% of the field).

Research.com Recognitions

  • 2000 - Fellow of the American Finance Association (AFA)
  • 1997 - Nobel Prize for a new method to determine the value of derivatives
  • 1997 - Nobel Memorial Prize laureates in Economics for a new method to determine the value of derivatives.
  • 1993 - Member of the National Academy of Sciences
  • 1986 - Fellow of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences
  • 1983 - Fellows of the Econometric Society
  • 1957 - Fellow of the American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS)
  • Fellow of the Financial Management Association
  • Fellow of the Financial Management Association
  • Fellow of the Financial Management Association
  • Fellow of the Financial Management Association
  • Fellow of the Financial Management Association

Overview

Robert C. Merton is affiliated with MIT in the United States. Their academic work spans fields such as Business, Management and Accounting, and Economics, Econometrics and Finance. Within these disciplines, their main focus areas include Finance, Accounting, Strategy and Management, Economics and Econometrics, and Sociology and Political Science.

Their research topics cover various subjects, including:

  • Financial Reporting and Valuation Research
  • Financial Literacy, Pension, Retirement Analysis
  • Banking stability, regulation, efficiency
  • Corporate Finance and Governance
  • Financial Markets and Investment Strategies
  • Corporate Insolvency and Governance
  • Corruption and Economic Development

Robert C. Merton's recent papers include:

  • "Trust, Transparency, and Complexity" (2023), published in Review of Financial Studies
  • "SeLFIES: A New Pension Bond and Currency for Retirement" (2020), published in SSRN Electronic Journal
  • "Tendencias y perspectivas de la ciencia financiera: Un artículo de revisión" (2020), published in Revista Mexicana de Economía y Finanzas
  • "No-fault default, chapter 11 bankruptcy, and financial institutions" (2021), published in Journal of Banking & Finance
  • "Trust in Lending" (2024), published in The Review of Economics and Statistics

Frequent co-authors include:

  • Richard T. Thakor
  • Wei Dai
  • Rizova Savina
  • Arun Muralidhar
  • Francisco Venegas-Martínez

The main venues where this scientist has published are:

  • SSRN Electronic Journal
  • The Journal of Alternative Investments
  • Review of Financial Studies
  • The Review of Economics and Statistics
  • Revista Mexicana de Economía y Finanzas

In addition to journal articles, Robert C. Merton has published a book titled Principles of Finance, expected to be released by Cambridge University Press in 2025.

Their career includes recognition through several awards and honors such as:

  • Fellow of the American Finance Association (AFA), 2000
  • Nobel Memorial Prize laureate in Economics, 1997, for a new method to determine the value of derivatives
  • Nobel Prize, 1997, for a new method to determine the value of derivatives
  • Member of the National Academy of Sciences, 1993
  • Fellow of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences, 1986
  • Fellow of the Econometric Society, 1983
  • Fellow of the American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS), 1957
  • Fellow of the Financial Management Association

Best Publications

  • ON THE PRICING OF CORPORATE DEBT: THE RISK STRUCTURE OF INTEREST RATES

    Robert C. Merton

  • AN INTERTEMPORAL CAPITAL ASSET PRICING MODEL

    Robert C. Merton

  • A Simple Model of Capital Market Equilibrium with Incomplete Information

    Robert C. Merton

  • Option pricing when underlying stock returns are discontinuous

    Robert C. Merton

  • Optimum consumption and portfolio rules in a continuous-time model☆

    Robert C Merton

  • Lifetime Portfolio Selection under Uncertainty: The Continuous-Time Case

    Robert C. Merton

  • On estimating the expected return on the market: An exploratory investigation

    Robert C. Merton

  • Continuous-Time Finance

    Robert C. Merton;Paul Anthony Samuelson

  • Labor Supply Flexibility and Portfolio Choice in a Life-Cycle Model

    Zvi Bodie;Robert Merton;William F. Samuelson

  • An analytic derivation of the cost of deposit insurance and loan guarantees An application of modern option pricing theory

    Robert C. Merton

  • On Market Timing and Investment Performance Part II: Statistical Procedures for Evaluating Forecasting Skills

    Roy D. Henriksson;Robert C. Merton

  • An Analytic Derivation of the Efficient Portfolio Frontier

    Unknown

  • THE VALUATION OF AMERICAN PUT OPTIONS

    Robert C. Merton;Michael J. Brennan;Eduardo S. Schwartz

  • On Market Timing and Investment Performance Part I: An Equilibrium Theory of Value for Market Forecasts

    Robert C. Merton

  • Dividend variability and variance bounds tests for the rationality of stock market prices

    Terry A. Marsh;Robert C. Merton

  • Financial innovation and the management and regulation of financial institutions

    Robert C. Merton

  • On the cost of deposit insurance when there are surveillance costs

    Robert C. Merton

  • Macroeconomics and Finance: The Role of the Stock Market

    Stanley Fischer;Stanley Fischer;Robert C. Merton;Robert C. Merton

  • A Functional Perspective of Financial Intermediation

    Robert C. Merton

  • Dividend Behavior for the Aggregate Stock Market

    Terry A. Marsh;Robert C. Merton

  • THEORY OF RISK CAPITAL IN FINANCIAL FIRMS

    Robert C. Merton;André Perold

Frequent Co-Authors

Zvi Bodie
Zvi Bodie Boston University
Francesco Giavazzi
Francesco Giavazzi Bocconi University
Robert S. Kaplan
Robert S. Kaplan Harvard University
Stanley Fischer
Stanley Fischer BlackRock (United States)
Alan J. Marcus
Alan J. Marcus Boston College
Peter Tufano
Peter Tufano Harvard University
Eduardo S. Schwartz
Eduardo S. Schwartz Simon Fraser University
Edward J. Kane
Edward J. Kane Boston College

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