The Economic Journal

This study analyzes evacuation messaging in a survey of Ukrainians in war-torn regions. The main finding is that providing actionable evacuation information (for example, about organized buses) is crucial for message effectiveness.

Forthcoming in EJ: ‘Civilian Evacuation During War: Evidence from Ukraine’ by Seung-Keun Martinez, Monika Pompeo, Roman M Sheremeta, Volodymyr Vakhitov, Matthias Weber, Nataliia Zaika doi.org/10.1093/ej/ueaf075 @rshereme.bsky.social

Participants who received daily air pollution forecasts adjusted their outdoor activities in response to high pollution levels.

Air pollution causes seven million deaths each year. New evidence from Pakistan shows that improving individuals’ ability to forecast air pollution allows them to adapt better.

Expectations and Adaptation to Environmental Threats Abstract. Scarce information and human capital may make it difficult to form accurate expectations, limiting responses to uncertain environmental threats l

Forthcoming in EJ: ‘Expectations and Adaptation to Environmental Threats’ by Husnain F Ahmad, Matthew Gibson, Fatiq Nadeem, Sanval Nasim, Arman Rezaee doi.org/10.1093/ej/ueaf071

Thereby suggesting that segregating children for language acquisition may slow academic integration.

Using German administrative data, the authors find that elementary-school-aged refugee children placed in separate preparatory language classes perform worse on standardised tests in grade five compared to those directly integrated into regular classrooms.

Forthcoming in EJ: ‘Starting off on the Right Foot – Language Learning Classes and the Educational Success of Refugee Children’ by Pia Schilling, Lisa Sofie Höckel doi.org/10.1093/ej/ueaf087

This study examines the impact of this change on p-hacking and publication bias. The author employs a diff-in-diff design, as well as the battery of tests proposed by Elliott et al. (2022b). The author finds no statistically significant effect of this policy.

In mid-2016, all journals of the American Economic Association (AEA) stopped including significance stars in their regression tables. This policy aimed to reduce the emphasis on statistical significance and shift the focus to the broader economic importance of research findings.

Forthcoming in EJ: ‘P-hacking and Significance Stars’ by Costanza Naguib doi.org/10.1093/ej/ueaf073

Using French administrative panel data, the authors show that despite lower pay, the public sector attracts higher-skilled workers. However, this edge fades over time and vanishes at the top, calling for policies to restore the attractiveness of public management careers.

Forthcoming in EJ: ‘Is the Public Sector Losing the Battle for Talent? Evidence from long French Panel Data’ by Olivier Bargain, Audrey Etienne, Blaise Melly doi.org/10.1093/ej/ueaf069

Delighted that our paper on how #ASGM shapes both #deforestation and local economic resilience in #Africa appears in this month’s EJ!

A great journey with co-authors, referees & editor.

May it open the door to more work on artisanal mining and development.

#Economics #Development #Sustainability

The authors assemble a novel measure of ASgM exposure, showing that this exposure increases with the international gold price in places where the geological layer underneath the surface is suitable for bearing gold. [Figure 1 shows the extend of gold-suitable geological layers.]

ASgM consists of widespread, labor-intensive, typically informal if not illegal, gold mining operations. The nature of the activity makes it excessively difficult to study its impacts.

The paper shows that exposure to artisanal and small-scale gold mining (ASgM) causes significant deforestation across Africa.

In the new issue of EJ: ‘Artisanal mining in Africa. Green for Gold?’ by Victoire Girard, Teresa Molina-Millán, Guillaume Vic doi.org/10.1093/ej/ueaf058 @victoiregirard.bsky.social @tmolinamillan.bsky.social

Do social norms drive the “polarization of reality” in American politics? We find Dems and Reps identify divergent norms governing factual statements, punish co-partisans who make politically uncongenial statements, and give less accurate answers when party norms are salient.

From forthcoming EJ Special Issue on Polarization in Field Experiments: ‘Reality Bites: Partisan Beliefs as Enforced Norms’ by Andrea Robbett, Peter Hans Matthews doi.org/10.1093/ej/ueaf062 @andrearobbett.bsky.social ‬
@phminvt.bsky.social @albertobisin.bsky.social

>the< place for fascinating papers: @theeconjournal.bsky.social 👇 @resmedia.bsky.social

Hot off the press! The November 2025 issue featuring the Editor’s Choice ‘Using Machine Learning to Target Treatment: The Case of Household Energy Use’ by Christopher R Knittel, Samuel Stolper 👉 bit.ly/43AtoU8

At the onset of COVID-19, invention novelty in the densest US cities fell sharply, largely due to lost face-to-face interactions. This shows that urban density’s role in idea exchange and recombination is critical, and unlikely to be permanently replaced by online communication.

Forthcoming in EJ: ‘Are Cities Losing Innovation Advantages? Online versus Face-to-face Interactions’ by Ruben Gaetani, Naqun Huang, Jing Li, Yanmin Yang doi.org/10.1093/ej/ueaf068 @ruben-gaetani.bsky.social