Carmen Villa

What are the effects of youth club closures in the UK? - Economics Observatory The widespread closing of youth clubs during the 2010s, driven by government austerity measures, led to falling educational performance and increasing rates of youth offending. The long-term…

TODAY on the Economics Observatory – What are the effects of youth club closures in the UK? By @carmenvillaecon.bsky.social

A warm welcome on board 😀 to:

Martina Pons, as an 𝐀𝐬𝐬𝐢𝐬𝐭𝐚𝐧𝐭 𝐏𝐫𝐨𝐟𝐞𝐬𝐬𝐨𝐫 𝐢𝐧 𝐄𝐜𝐨𝐧𝐨𝐦𝐞𝐭𝐫𝐢𝐜𝐬 𝐢𝐧 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐃𝐢𝐠𝐢𝐭𝐚𝐥 𝐀𝐠𝐞.

And

Carmen Villa (@carmenvillaecon.bsky.social), as an 𝐀𝐬𝐬𝐢𝐬𝐭𝐚𝐧𝐭 𝐏𝐫𝐨𝐟𝐞𝐬𝐬𝐨𝐫 𝐨𝐟 𝐄𝐜𝐨𝐧𝐨𝐦𝐢𝐜𝐬 𝐨𝐟 𝐂𝐡𝐢𝐥𝐝 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐘𝐨𝐮𝐭𝐡 𝐃𝐞𝐯𝐞𝐥𝐨𝐩𝐦𝐞𝐧𝐭 𝐞𝐧𝐝𝐨𝐰𝐞𝐝 𝐛𝐲 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐉𝐚𝐜𝐨𝐛𝐬 𝐂𝐞𝐧𝐭𝐞𝐫 𝐟𝐨𝐫 𝐏𝐫𝐨𝐝𝐮𝐜𝐭𝐢𝐯𝐞 𝐘𝐨𝐮𝐭𝐡 𝐃𝐞𝐯𝐞𝐥𝐨𝐩𝐦𝐞𝐧𝐭.

Excited, honoured, and proud on my first day as Assistant Professor at @econ.uzh.ch. Thanks for the kind welcome!

This is a particularly good fit for someone interested in applied microeconomics (labour, health, crime). We look forward to receiving your application! #EconSky #EconRA

@theifs.bsky.social is a fantastic environment to start a research career. You'll be surrounded by smart, supportive colleagues and exposed to top-tier academic and policy work.

Former RAs have gone on to PhDs at top programmes, stayed on at IFS, or moved into impactful roles across policy.

Research Assistance (Crime and Justice) The Institute for Fiscal Studies (IFS) is hiring a Research Assistant to support ongoing work on the effects of youth clubs on youth development. The Research Assistant will work closely with Dr. Carm...

🚨 I'm hiring a Research Assistant at the Institute for Fiscal Studies 🚨

This is a great opportunity for someone interested in academic + policy work.

The position is based in London and starting this autumn.

Please apply below or share 🙂
app.beapplied.com/apply/nithts...

Happy to share that @annabindler.bsky.social & I will organize the 16th #TWEC Transatlantic Workshop on the Economics of Crime in Berlin.

Save the date: 26-27 September 2025.

CfP follows next month #econsky

If you're an academic job market candidate studying causal questions related to crime/CJ policy, and you're still looking for a job for next year, could you email me? I'm trying to keep track/would love to help if I can.

The short- and long-run effects of paying disadvantaged teenagers to go to school | Institute for Fiscal Studies This working paper studies the long-run effect of a cash transfer to disadvantaged students on educational attainment, earnings and crime.

NEW #IFSWorkingPaper: The short- and long-run effects of paying disadvantaged teenagers to go to school by Jack Britton, @nickridpath.bsky.social, @carmenvillaecon.bsky.social & Ben Waltmann.

Read here: https://buff.ly/43eeAuU

Quote from IFS Research Economist Nick Ridpath: "The EMA, which cost billions through the 2000s, did not have the hoped-for positive effects on educational outcomes and later employment. Indeed, it looks like it may have had negative consequences by discouraging disadvantaged young people from getting work experience. The Scottish, Welsh and Northern Irish governments, which still fund this scheme, might want to take note."

“The EMA, which cost billions through the 2000s, did not have the hoped-for positive effects.”

Read Jack Britton, @carmenvillaecon.bsky.social, @nickridpath.bsky.social and Ben Waltmann's report: https://buff.ly/3EVJIWb

Watch our 11am launch event: https://buff.ly/4b6CHO6

[10/10]

Call for papers:

The Transatlantic Workshop on the Economics of Crime - one of the best conferences in this area - will be held in Berlin, Sep 26-27.

** Deadline for paper submissions: May 2 **

bit.ly/4183vJ8

Academic benefits of reducing teenage alcohol consumption Teenage drinking has significant costs, affecting public health, risky behavior, and cognitive development. Raising the minimum legal drinking age can substantially enhance academic performance.

What happens when you increase the legal drinking age from 16 to 18?

Manuel Bagues & @carmenvillaecon.bsky.social explore this question in the context of Spain. They find that the reforms decreased teenage alcohol consumption and improved educational outcomes. 🍻🚫📚

wol.iza.org/opinions/aca...

Are you working on crime topics? Do you want to meet a lot of cool colleagues and get great feedback? Apply! 🔽👇🔻🙃

Join our team at the Behavioral Insights and Parenting Lab at UChicago as an RP! Our RPs gain valuable pre-doctoral experience in all stages of conducting field and lab experiments and survey research as a cohort member in the Becker Friedman Institute for Economics pre-doc program. Please share!

If you are working with USoc data I highly recommend to apply and attend!

🍷📒🍷New column summarising our work on the effects of the Minimum Legal Drinking Age on educational outcomes on
@cepr_org
🍷📒🍷

cepr.org/voxeu/column...

@warwickecon.bsky.social

🚨New entry in @policyimpacts.bsky.social on the effects of youth club closures in London. Thanks to Ellen, Mira, and the rest of the team.
If you haven’t explored Policy Impacts yet, it’s a powerful tool for comparing MVPF calculations across policies. Check it out!
policyimpacts.org/policy-impac...

Youth clubs could be valuable investments - Understanding Society What are the effects of youth club closures in the UK? widespread closing of youth clubs during the 2010s driven by government austerity measures led to falling educational performance and increasing ...

New blog: @carmenvillaecon.bsky.social on crime rates and why youth clubs could be valuable investments, based on her @theifs.bsky.social research

How cuts to youth clubs affected teen crime and education | Institute for Fiscal Studies Teenagers affected by austerity-induced youth club closures performed 4% worse in exams at age 16 and became 14% more likely to commit crimes.

Teenagers affected by austerity-induced youth club closures performed 4% worse in exams at age 16 and became 14% more likely to commit crimes.

@carmenvillaecon.bsky.social examines the impact of youth club closures on teen offending rates and educational outcomes:

Back from Yet Another Globetrotting Adventure, Indiana Jones Checks His Mail and Discovers That His Bid for Tenure Has Been Denied January 22, 1939 Assistant Professor Henry “Indiana” Jones Jr. Department of Anthropology Chapman Hall 227B Marshall College Dr. Jones: As chairman...

I don’t have a good answer, but this old McSweeny’s piece denying Indiana Jones tenure lives rent free in my mind!

www.mcsweeneys.net/articles/bac...

Consumo de alcohol entre los adolescentes y rendimiento educativo Por Manuel Bagues y Carmen Villa El aumento de la edad mínima legal para beber alcohol de 16 a 18 años ha logrado reducir parcialmente el consumo entre menores y ha tenido efectos positivos, aunque...

(In Spanish) Nuevo artículo en @nadaesgratis que resume nuestro trabajo sobre cómo afecta el rendimiento educativo aumentar la edad mínima para el consumo de alcohol. ¡Muchas gracias al equipo editor!
nadaesgratis.es/bagues/consu...

Between 2010 and 2019, 30% of youth clubs in London closed.
In the areas affected, youths aged 10 to 17 became 14% more likely to commit crime.

🔎 Read @carmenvillaecon.bsky.social on the effects of youth club closures https://buff.ly/3ZGG6PC.

#ChartOfTheDay #YouthClubs

Yo!

@carmenvillaecon.bsky.social has written a tremendous paper on what works to improve disadvantaged men's pathways.

Today, I discuss her fantastic contribution.

She is currently on the Job Market

cc @essobecker.bsky.social

Did Austerity Scar Young Men?

Budget cuts led to widespread closures of youth centers & police stations, creating two distinct natural experiments by @carmenvillaecon.bsky.social & @elisafacchetti.bsky.social

Fantastic new papers on what works to prevent crime

open.substack.com/pub/dralicee...

It's an interesting question! We find falls in consumption across all ages from 14 to 17. We do not explore the mechanisms directly, but a reason might be that teens consume with a broad peer group who could be slightly older or younger than them. Very happy to hear other thoughts you may have!

Read the full paper here: cepr.org/publications...

or here (ungated):
papers.ssrn.com/sol3/papers....

8/8

These results have important implications: youth cognitive ability could be improved if countries strengthen MLDA enforcement or raise the MLDA to 18 years in countries where it remains at 16 (e.g., Austria, Belgium, Denmark, Germany and Switzerland)
7/N

The effects are likely driven by the direct effect of alcohol. We do not observe changes in leisure, consumption of other drugs, or study efforts. We find some falls in the consumption of tranquillisers + sleeping pills, suggesting improved mental health
6/N

Less drinking = better grades. Students subject to stricter MLDA rules scored 4% higher on PISA exams—about two extra months of learning 📈✏️
5/N

The reforms were moderately successful. The number of drinking events fell by 12% and the probability of getting drunk by 18%, among those aged 14 to 17
4/N