Some research suggests violence towards minority groups is exacerbated during times of economic stress. Mark Koyama discusses his work on when the tendency to target minority groups becomes manifest. Using 1000 years' date on pogroms across Europe, he shows that the likelihood of scapegoating minority groups increased by 50% in seasons when harvests were likely to be poor.
Video Vox
Josephine Duh, Dean Spears 16 July 2018
Although average wealth in India has risen in recent years, calorie consumption has paradoxically fallen. Josephine Duh and Dean Spears explain that Indians are eating less despite being richer because disease rates are slowly declining, meaning that nutrition from food is extracted more efficiently.
Dong Lou 19 July 2018
Superstar firms like Facebook and Tesla make a substantial difference to overall industry productivity. In his research, Dong Lou asks whether they also impact students’ choices of degree majors. Using data on students' college major choices and the stock returns and media coverage of relevant companies in the US, he shows that firm performance had a positive effect on encouraging students to choose relevant majors. But the relevant labour demand in those industries has not risen accordingly, which has depressed wages.
Dirk Jenter 12 July 2018
The ways in which the size and nature of a company's board of directors affects its performance are complex. Using a dataset of German firms, Dirk Jenter shows that profitability and stock market valuations decrease as board sizes increase. Ill-designed board size regulations can therefore negatively impact a firm's performance.
Andrew Ellul 05 July 2018
Systemic risk has been a cause for growing concern since the onset of the Global Crisis. Andrew Ellul explains his research on the lending side of systemic risk creation, which address the types of investments financial institutions make. These investments have shifted towards equity markets, which are riskier and less liquid, and more interconnected - all of which amplifies risk in crisis.
Shqiponja Telhaj 09 July 2018
The social benefits of higher education are as important as the improved job opportunities and lifetime earnings it might provide. Shqiponja Telhaj explains how higher education is linked to improved economic growth, health, and wellbeing - with the benefits spilling over from those that received higher education to those that did not.
Gill Wyness 02 July 2018
A central motivation for getting a degree is to increase one's job prospects. Gill Wyness discusses how having a degree does indeed increase lifetime earnings for men and women, and how the UK's income-contingent student loan system ensures that the burden of repayment only increases as incomes rise. This video was recorded at the 2018 RES Conference.
Sarah Smith 28 June 2018
Like in other fields, women are significantly underrepresented in economics at all levels. Sarah Smith explains how the Royal Economic Society is addressing this through its Women's Committee, by promoting the role of women in the UK economics profession. This video was recorded at the 2018 RES Conference.
Stephen Cecchetti 25 June 2018
Though central banks do not seem concerned about being driven obsolete by cryptocurrencies, some are considering issuing digital currencies with similar technology. Stephen Cecchetti discusses three policy implications this might have, namely for restricting the illegal use of cash, allowing for negative interest rates, and improving financial access. All three are possible, but come with risk.
Alminas Žaldokas 21 June 2018
Investors ask companies for greater information disclosure in order to make better investment decisions. Alminas Žaldokas discusses his research on whether increased disclosure to investors may be helping firms collude on prices, harming consumers. This video was recorded at CEPR's Third Annual Spring Symposium.