He was also an economist with the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System, as well as a consultant to the Subcommittee on International Finance of the House Banking and Currency Committee.
The earlier part of his distinguished career he specialized in the fields of economic development, money and banking, and macroeconomic stabilization policy.
During that time he published several books outlining his critical analysis of Ricardo's theory of comparative advantage to which he granted little relevance in a global economy characterized by low-wage exporting countries and high capital mobility.
His work on international trade can be seen today to be of particular interest in a world increasingly dominated by aggressive low-wage economies such as China, India, and Vietnam.
Culbertson's turn to heterodoxy led to his critical work being largely ignored rather than debunked by the orthodox mainstream.