Research 2018-2020

For current research please see Ongoing research (2019-2021).

In line with my interests, my research mainly focuses on issues related to economic development and the concentration of resources, considering both the personal and the geographical dimensions of concentration. In this regard, during the last year I have been analysing issues of urbanisation and urban concentration, inequality, institutions and economic growth. In parallel, I have also been interested and worked on issues related to climate change and adaptation, migrations, conflict and international aid.

I. Urbanisation and development:

This has been one of my main lines of research for many years now. I analyse the trade-off between the benefits and costs that come with the concentration of resources, in particular in large cities. Work in this line of research has led to several publications, including Castells-Quintana, D. 2017. ‘Malthus living in a slum: Urban concentration, infrastructure and economic growth’ Journal of Urban Economics.

Currently, my focus is on population dynamics, urbanisation without growth and the rise of megacities. With a simple theoretical model we are able to capture how population growth and internal migrations, in a context of low productivity and lack of investments in urban infrastructure, can lead to urbanisation without economic growth and the rise of poor megacities. The predictions of the model are validated using cross-country panel data as well as regional data for Tanzania.

II. Inequality and development:

Concentration of resources also comes in the form of income inequality. I study inequality as a cause and consequence of socio-economic and institutional performance. One specific line of research focuses on the effects of inequality on development. With Vicente Royuela, we recently published a paper on the positive and negative effects of inequality on long-run growth (in Empirical Economics). Building on that, we have been studying the effects of inequality on human development (a forthcoming paper in Sustainable Development).

With José Maria Larrú and Maicu Lacalle, we study the relationship between microfinance and aid flows and the evolution of inequality in 87 developing countries, trying to understand what are the key factors that allow for microfinance and aid to improve income distribution (a forthcoming paper in World Economy Journal).

With Soran Mohtadi, we study how commodity price shocks affect income distribution depending on the type of commodity and the initial country´s conditions.

III. Inequality and city size:

Combining my research on urban issues with that on inequality, another line of research focuses on the relationship between city size and income inequality. I do this at different levels and contexts. On the one hand, looking at inequality at country level, to study how its evolution depends on the size and distribution of cities (see Castells-Quintana, D. 2018. ‘Beyond Kuznets: Inequality and the size and distribution of cities’ Journal of Regional Science). On the other hand, looking at inequality at city level. For this, I take a look at developed countries, studying cities in the OECD (see forthcoming paper in Papers in Regional Science, with Vicente Royuela and Paolo Veneri), as well as developing countries, studying cities in Latin America.

IV. Climate change and socio-economic dynamics:

With Tom McDermott and Maria Lopez-Uribe, from the London School of Economics (LSE), we have been studying the interplay between climate change and socio-economic dynamics, both at the macro and micro level (see recent papers we published in Climate and Development and World Development). Currently, we are studying how natural disasters and climate trends affect urbanisation patterns and social conflict.

With Tom McDermot and Melanie Krause (from Hamburg University), we are studying the connection between climate change and the spatial distribution of population and economic activity within countries.

With colleagues at La Laguna University (Tenerife), we are studying the relationship between urban dynamics and energy efficiency.

With Elisa Dienesch (from Science Po, Aix) and Melanie Krause, we are studying the link between the compactness of cities and their levels of pollution.