Recently, Colin Corbett, a Bradley assistant professor of economics, has been pondering a question: if someone was shown a $100 bill and given the choice to either take it or save a stranger’s life by not taking it, what would the majority do?
“I wonder how many people would turn the bill down to save someone they don’t know,” Corbett said. “It’s one thing to save a life of someone you know, but it’s another thing to help a statistic somewhere out there.”
In his case, it’s not a question of economics but rather of public health. Corbett is one of many to participate in a COVID-19 vaccine clinical trial run in Peoria by Optimal Research and sponsored by Johnson & Johnson.
COVID-19 claims an average of 1,000 lives per day in the U.S. alone, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. To develop a vaccine for the deadly virus, over 30,000 volunteers from around the country have participated in these trials.
“I did think about the potential danger, but I am relatively young and healthy,” Corbett said. “Also, if, through my participation, I could speed up the process by even one day, I am potentially saving about 1,000 lives.”
The trial was paused on Oct. 12 due to an unexplained illness in a study participant, but Johnson & Johnson released a statement Oct. 23 that it was going to resume the trial.
“I remember how a year ago, for the first time, I saw an ad for a vaccine trial for another virus and got rejected because I had already contracted it,” Corbett said with a soft chuckle. “But being an economist who thinks about social welfare functions often, I knew I wanted to make a difference in the world.”
Kamryn Samoska, a sophomore psychology major, takes a “Principles of Economics” class with Corbett this semester and has benefited greatly from his relevant and timely examples, both through his teaching and his actions.
“His ability to connect economics to everyday situations has helped me grasp concepts much better than I have in the past,” Samoska said. “He told us about his participation in a COVID-19 vaccine trial, and I think it’s really admirable that we have professors so dedicated to the welfare of other humans.”
He was part of another organization, 1Day Sooner, that advocates on behalf of human challenge trial volunteers for autonomy and agency within the experimental process, so that the public is well-informed about these types of trials and mobility of resources for the COVID-19 trials, specifically.
Colleagues of Corbett echo Samoska as first hand sources for Corbett’s investment in the welfare of others.
“Ever since Colin arrived at Bradley, he has demonstrated a deep commitment to the common good of the community and the university,” Joshua Lewer, Bradley’s economics department chair and associate professor, said.
Corbett said being a Christian led him to help people around him. Some of his inspirations were his parents, who taught him to watch out for the most vulnerable. He added that being involved in Boy Scouts also had a positive influence on him.
“In the end, it’s about people cooperating with each other to help us all be better off in the long run,” Corbett said.
