Publications
”Childhood Migration and Education: Evidence from Indonesia” (2024, Journal of Development Economics)
Abstract. Millions of families migrate every year in search of better opportunities. Whether these opportunities materialize for the children brought with them depends on the quality of the destination that their parents selected. Exploiting variation in the age of migration, I analyze the impact of destination quality on the educational outcomes of childhood internal migrants in Indonesia. Using Population Census microdata from 2000 and 2010, I show that children who spend more time growing up in districts characterized by higher average educational attainment among permanent residents tend to exhibit greater probabilities of completing primary and secondary schooling. Moreover, educational outcomes of migrants converge with those of permanent residents at an average rate of 1.7 to 2.2 percent annually, with children from less educated households benefiting more from additional exposure. My findings suggest substantial heterogeneity of returns to childhood migration with respect to destination.
Working Papers
”The Gender Gap in Entry Wages: Evidence from Exogenous Vacancies" (previously: Hiring and the Dynamics of the Gender Gap) (with Hannah Illing and Linh Tô) New Draft submitted
Abstract. This paper studies the gender gap in entry wages. Using German administrative data from 1981 to 2016, we exploit sudden worker deaths to identify exogenous vacancies and compare female and male replacements hired into ex ante comparable vacancies. Female replacements earn 16 log points less at entry; the gap remains 10 log points after accounting for their wages in previous jobs. The gap is not explained by worker observables, outside options, amenities, hours, or coworker adjustments. It shrinks in tight labor markets and widens where firms have greater wage-setting power, pointing to entry wage setting as a central firm-side margin.
”Disruptive Effects of Natural Disasters: The 1906 San Francisco Fire” New Draft (Appendix)
Abstract. Natural disasters are increasing in frequency worldwide, making it essential to understand how vulnerable populations respond. This paper studies the short- and long-run consequences of the 1906 San Francisco Fire, one of the largest urban fires in U.S. history. Using linked Census records, I follow residents of San Francisco and their children from 1900 to 1940. Historical evidence indicates that exogenous factors, including wind and water availability, determined the fire boundary. I exploit this variation in a spatial regression discontinuity design to identify the causal effect of losing one’s home. In the short run, the fire displaced residents, pushed men into lower-paying occupations, and reduced entrepreneurship. Children experienced disrupted schooling and lost several months of education. While migration effects attenuate over time, negative labor market impacts for men remain substantial even in 1940. I also find a persistent increase in women’s labor force participation, rejecting the “reversal of fortune” documented for more recent disasters.
Listen here to the ECONtribute Wirtschaftspodcast episode about my research concerning the 1906 San Francisco Fire (in German).
An earlier version of this paper was awarded the "Young Author Best Paper Award" of the German Economic Association (VfS Reinhard-Selten-Preis).
"Beyond vows: Inequality by family structure" (with Zainab Iftikhar and Theresa Linhard) New Draft submitted
Abstract. This paper studies how family structure shapes consumption inequality and poverty in the USA. Using PSID data and a collective household model, we estimate sharing rules for married and cohabitating couples and recover individual-level consumption. In the full sample, cohabitating couples appear more egalitarian on average, with women receiving a share of household resources 9% higher than married women. These differences reflect systematic differences in characteristics across union types and largely disappear when comparing otherwise similar couples. Half of the economy-wide consumption inequality is explained by inequality between and within married households. 7% comes from cohabitation, 23% from between singles while the rest is explained by inequality between these three groups. Quantitatively, distinguishing cohabitation increases the role of between-group inequality and changes the assessment of poverty.
Work in Progress
“Mobility and Labor Market Effects of Being Hit by a Flood Event” (with Hannah Illing, Johannes Weber, and Leonie Wicht)
"Skills, Wage Growth, and the Gender Wage Gap" (with Alden Porter)
"The Medium and Long-Run Consequences of the Ahr Valley Flood on the Distribution of Income and Wealth" (with Julia Mink) as part of the interdisciplinary project SOZIAHR
Resting
”Economic Development, Structural Transformation and Female Labor Force Participation: The United States” (with Robert Margo and Claudia Olivetti)
"East-West Migration: Evidence from 200 Years of Settlement in the United States" (with Samuel Bazzi, James Feigenbaum, Martin Fiszbein, and Santiago Perez)
"How Did Service in WWI Affect American GIs' Attitudes?" (with James Feigenbaum)
”A Silver Lining: Women and the 1918 Flu Pandemic” (with Katarina Fedorov and Pawel Janas)