Marcella Alsan

Workshop on Economics of Education - Universidad de los Andes WORKSHOP ON ECONOMICS OF EDUCATION 2026 VALLE NEVADO, CHILE 18ᵗʰ – 21ᵗʰ AUGUST 2026 KEYNOTE SPEAKER: JOSHUA GOODMAN Associate Professor of Economics and Education at Boston University. CHRISTOPHER NEI...

📢 Call for Papers – Workshop on Economics of Education

📍 Hotel Puerta del Sol, Valle Nevado (Chile)
🗓 August 18–21
🎤 Keynotes: Josh Goodman (BU) & Chris Neilson (Yale)

📝 Submission deadline: March 2
🔗 Submit here: www.uandes.cl/universidad/...

Paper Submission | Department of Economics

📢 SITE Session 16: Economics of Health Inequality at Stanford organized by me, Petra Persson & Aline Butikofer. Submissions due by June 15, 2026 economics.stanford.edu/site/paper-s...

The Making of Modern Corporate Finance: A History of the Ideas and How They Help Build the Wealth of Nations by Donald H. Chew Jr. (Forthcoming Article)

Forthcoming book review in the JEL: "The Making of Modern Corporate Finance: A History of the Ideas and How They Help Build the Wealth of Nations by Donald H. Chew Jr." by Yueran Ma. www.aeaweb.org/articles?id=...

Scoring the Behavioral Economics of Crime: Reflections on Unforgiving Places: The Unexpected Origins of American Gun Violence (Forthcoming Article) - In <i>Unforgiving Places</i>, Jens Ludwig makes a strong claim for the behavioral economics of crime, scoring it a knockout when pitted against conventional wisdom. Focusing on gun violence, he proposes a unifying explanation that draws on disciplines beyond economics, especially sociology, criminology, and psychology. Although the intended audience is mainly policymakers and the general public, scholars will benefit from reading Ludwig’s thought-provoking book. In this essay, I evaluate the book’s evidence and elaborate on the research needed to resolve unsettled hypotheses. I focus on several key issues, including linking self-control theory to cognitive processes; informal neighborhood social control; legitimacy in community policing; toxic environmental effects on cognition; the limits of administrative data; age-specific pathways of gun carrying; and the impact of social change. In the spirit of consilience that <i>Unforgiving Places</i> calls for, I argue that further engagement of the book’s framework with these issues yields a promising research agenda.

Forthcoming in the JEL: "Scoring the Behavioral Economics of Crime: Reflections on Unforgiving Places: The Unexpected Origins of American Gun Violence" by Robert J. Sampson.

When Democracy Falters: A Multidisciplinary, Multibook Review Essay on Polarization, Populism, and Authoritarianism (Forthcoming Article) - This multibook review argues that identity-driven polarization interacts with institutional design to erode democratic guardrails. Reading Heather Cox Richardson’s <i>Democracy Awakening</i>, Tom Schaller and Paul Waldman’s <i>White Rural Rage</i>, and Ezra Klein’s <i>Why We're Polarized</i> through an economist’s lens, I emphasize two claims. First, when institutions fail to deliver broadly shared security and dignity, anti-pluralist projects gain legitimacy and room to maneuver. Second, questions of belonging, citizenship, and the obligations of government to the people are informed by culture and institutional trust. The culture of the United States is not one that lends itself readily to ethnonationalism, but these books make a case for an America that is, and perhaps has always, been divided by notions of who “we” are. I situate the books within the economics literature on populism, polarization, and institutions, and examine what we can learn about rebuilding both prosperity and democratic resilience in the United States.

Forthcoming in the JEL: "When Democracy Falters: A Multidisciplinary, Multibook Review Essay on Polarization, Populism, and Authoritarianism" by Betsey Stevenson.

Shock Values: Prices and Inflation in American Democracy by Carola Binder (Forthcoming Article)

Forthcoming book review in the JEL: "Shock Values: Prices and Inflation in American Democracy by Carola Binder" by Michael D. Bordo.

Workshop on People’s Understanding of and Support for Economic Policies September 8-10, 2026 Riederau Ammersee The workshop is supported by Ludwig-Maximilians-Universität München, CRC Rationality and Competition, and the Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft (DFG) - German Research Foundation (RU “Labor market transformation”).

Keynote Speakers Marcella Alsan (Stanford University) Dmitry Taubinsky (University of California, Berkeley)

Call for Papers Submission deadline: February 28, 2026 Submissions: Full papers; pre-analysis plans, pre-registered reports, and extended abstracts are also welcome. Logistics & Support: The workshop will be held at Seminarzentrum Riederau; accommodation for two nights will be covered, and limited travel support is available upon request (details in the call).

📑🗣️ Call for Papers – Riederau Workshop on People’s Understanding of and Support for Economic Policies

📅 September 8–10, 2026, Riederau am Ammersee

👤 Keynotes: @marcellaalsan.bsky.social, Dmitry Taubinsky

⏰ Submission deadline: Feb 28, 2026

👉 econexperiments.eu/RiederauWork...

#callforpapers

Hospital Mergers Gain Momentum As Trump’s ‘Beautiful Bill’ Cuts Loom Hospital merger and acquisition activity ended 2025 with momentum expected to continue as drastic cuts to Medicaid spending under Trump’s One Big Beautiful Bill Act loom.

Hospital Mergers Gain Momentum As Trump’s ‘Beautiful Bill’ Cuts Loom www.forbes.com/sites/brucej...

Economics of Race and Stratification, Spring 2026

DEADLINE THURSDAY: The NBER Race and Stratification Working Group will have its annual meeting on Friday, March 27, 2026. @franciscaantman.bsky.social, Bocar Ba, Robynn Cox and I are organizing the program. Submit your paper by December 11, 2025! @nber.org #Econsky www.nber.org/conferences/...

And she has a ton more research in progress - on renaming Indigenous monuments in U.S. (think Mt. McKinley vs. Denali) and perceptions therein, on improving water in Pakistan and much more. Creative, careful scholar and excellent teacher. Please take a careful look!

She randomizes links btw rural Malawian migrant women: finds those encouraged to invite higher-SES guests reap economic gains, while homophilic links increase well-being. Findings highlight a tradeoff: social ties that offer economic gains may come at the cost of those that improve well-being.

JOB MARKET CANDIDATE Amazing Harvard student Gabriella Fleischman is on the job market w/ppr: "Economic and Psychological Returns to Social Relationships: Alleviating Constraints to Network Formation in Malawi"
gabriella-fleischman.github.io

Global Health Opportunities Fair | Organization and Researcher Presentation Interest Form The Bay Area Global Health Alliance and Stanford Center for Innovation in Global Health will host a Global Health Opportunities Fair on Friday, November 7th from 5:30-7:00PM at the Stanford Medical Sc...

Calling academics & global health non-profits: Looking for student researchers or volunteers to support your work (e.g., data analysis, case-studies, strategy projects; paid or unpaid)? Recruit motivated graduate and undergraduate students to support your projects: tinyurl.com/present-global-health

that is so kind and yet so many painful rejections too...thanks so much Alex :-)

YouTube video by NBER Economics of Firearm Markets, Crime, and Gun Violence

NBER Conference on Econ of Firearm Markets, Crime & Gun Violence earlier today www.youtube.com/watch?v=9k3a... - appreciate support from @jenniferdoleac.bsky.social and Arnold

Job advertisement

PhD slots in health econ at Hamburg Center for Health Economics, University of Hamburg Germany

Just came back from a visit and it's a vibrant city and Center.
www.uni-hamburg.de/en/stellenan...

Have a paper related to crime or criminal justice policy that you'd like to present in the ViCE seminar? Email it to me at jdoleac@arnoldventures.org. Studies using causal research designs are the best fit. See past schedules here: jenniferdoleac.com/vice-seminar/

an(other) example of how racial bias in R&D is propagated

Black patients systematically receive lower rates of follow-up care than white patients even when the screening results would suggest they should receive higher rates of care, from @marcellaalsan.bsky.social‬, Liran Einav, Amy Finkelstein, and Jonathan Zhang https://www.nber.org/papers/w34168

Photo by Y S on Unsplash

Considering a PhD in Health Policy? Discover our innovative program training the next generation of leaders in decision sciences, health economics and evaluative methods. Join info session Sept. 9 at 10 am to explore the application process and get your questions answered. bit.ly/479erLy

Open letter Click here to add your signature. An Open Letter from Economists in Support of Governor Lisa Cook and Federal Reserve Independence To the President, Members of Congress, and the American public: We wr...

Over 125 economists signed the open letter calling on the President, Congress, and the American public to uphold the principles of Federal Reserve independence and not remove Lisa Cook without due process.

There's still time to sign! And please share.

#EconSky

docs.google.com/document/d/1...

Open call for applications, Roybal Center for Behavior Change in Health - Clinical Trial Applications. Submit letters of intent by October 15, 2025. More information: https://www.nber.org/calls-papers-and-proposals/roybal-center-behavior-change-health-clinical-trial-applications

Procurement auctions, compared to regulated competition, can improve consumer welfare in health insurance markets by reducing inefficiencies, curbing market power, and raising quality, from José Ignacio Cuesta and Pietro Tebaldi https://www.nber.org/papers/w34141

Estimating the impacts of large-scale unconditional cash transfers on child survival in Kenya, from Michael W. Walker, Nick Shankar, Edward Miguel, Dennis Egger, and Grady Killeen https://www.nber.org/papers/w34152

What bold step will you take next to make your mark on the world? Perhaps an MS in health policy? Join us Sept. 10, at 10 am PT for live info session about the program. Learn about application & ask questions. Learn more & register:
healthpolicy.fsi.stanford.edu/content/ms-h...

The Economics of the UK Health and Social Care Labour Market: How Labour Economics Can Inform Policy toward the Frontline Care Workforce by Robert Elliott (Forthcoming Article)

Forthcoming book review in the JEL: "The Economics of the UK Health and Social Care Labour Market: How Labour Economics Can Inform Policy toward the Frontline Care Workforce by Robert Elliott" by Elaine Kelly. www.aeaweb.org/articles?id=...

If you'll be on the #EconJobMarket this coming year, you may want to join this webinar by @aereorg.bsky.social, titled, "Navigating Uncertain Waters: Advice for the Current Job Market," with Min Gong & @adrienneohler.bsky.social. 29 Sept 2025 @ 11am ET.

Grateful for the opportunity to contribute to the terrific handbook on culture and economic behavior :)

JAMA reports on the latest estimates of COVID vaccine effectiveness
“COVID-19 vaccinations averted 2.5 million deaths during 2020-2024… but this benefit was mostly limited to a minority of the population of older individuals."
#vaccine #covid #medicine
marketdesigner.blogspot.com/2025/08/covi...