Research
Research Interests
Development Economics, Labor Economics, Public Economics, Chinese Economy
Working Papers
“Soybeans or Planes: Political Power of US Businesses and China’s Tariff Retaliation” (with Hong Ma, Ruobin Qin, and Yuan Xu), revise and resubmit
“Hourly Data Matters for Estimating the Dose-Response Relationship between Air Pollution and Mortality” (with Bissan Ghaddar, Kimberly Singer Babiarz, Hongbin Li, Lynn Hildemann, Han Hong, Peng Yin, Maigeng Zhou, and Grant Miller)
“Estimating Capital-Labor Substitution in China: Evidence from Firm-Level Data” (with Yifan Zhang and Yunbin Zhang)
“How Common is the Prosperity? The Trends and Nature of China’s Income Inequality, 1988-2018” (with Hongbin Li and Yunbin Zhang), under review
“The Burden of Education Costs in China: A Struggle for All, but Heavier for Lower-Income Families” (with Dezhuang Hu, Hongbin Li, Tang Li, and Binh Thai Nguyen), under review
“Son Preference and Early Childhood Investments in China” (with Douglas Almond and Hongbin Li)
“The Impact of Ultrasound Technology on the Status of Women in China” (with Avraham Ebenstein and Hongbin Li)
“Who Are China’s Future Leaders? Evidence from a College Student Survey” (with Hongbin Li, Xinzheng Shi, and Binzhen Wu)
Publications
"Elite College Education and Social Mobility in China"(with Ruixue Jia and Hongbin Li), Economic Development and Cultural Change, forthcoming. (previously circulated under the title “Can Elite College Education Change One's Fate in China?”)
“English Language Requirement and Educational Inequality: Evidence from 16 Million College Applicants in China” (with Hongbin Li, Kai Mu, and Shaoda Wang), Journal of Development Economics, 168, 2024, 103271 .
“Job Preferences and Outcomes for China’s College Graduates” (with Sinclair Cook, Hongbin Li, and Yanyan Xiong), China Quarterly, 2023, 1-19.
“The Motherhood Penalty in China: Magnitudes, Trends, and the Role of Grandparenting” (with Yunbin Zhang and Ben Zou), Journal of Comparative Economics, 51(1), 2023, 105-132.
“Heterogeneous Impacts of the Section 301 Tariffs: Evidence from the Revision of Product Lists” (with Hong Ma), Canadian Journal of Economics, 56(1), 2023, 164-190.
“Skill Biased Tax Policy Change: Labor Market Effects of China’s VAT Reform” (with Hongbin Li), Labour Economics, 78, 2022, 102213.
“The Scarring Effects of College Education Deprivation During China’s Cultural Revolution” (with Hongbin Li), Economic Development and Cultural Change, 70(3), 2022, 981-1016.
“The Effect of Artificial Intelligence on China’s Labor Market” (with Guangsu Zhou, Gaosi Chu, and Lixing Li), China Economic Journal, 13(1), 2019, 24-41.
“Skill Complementarities and Returns to Higher Education: Evidence from the College Enrollment Expansion in China” (with Hongbin Li, Yueyuan Ma, Xinzheng Shi, and Xue Qiao), China Economic Review, 46, 2017, 10-26.
“Linear Regression with an Estimated Regressor: Applications to Aggregate Indicators of Economic Development” (with Binzhen Wu and Zhaoguo Zhan), Empirical Economics, 50, 2016, 299-316.
“Poverty in China’s Colleges and the Targeting of Financial Aid” (with Hongbin Li, Xinzheng Shi, and Binzhen Wu), China Quarterly, 216, December 2013, 1-23.
“Evaluating China’s Poverty Alleviation Program: A Regression Discontinuity Approach”, Journal of Public Economics (Lead Article), 101, May 2013, 1–11.
“Prenatal Sex Selection and Missing Girls in China: Evidence from the Diffusion of Diagnostic Ultrasound” (with Yuyu Chen and Hongbin Li), Journal of Human Resources, 48(1), Winter 2013, 36-70.
“Does Having a Cadre-Parent Pay? Evidence from the First Job Offers of Chinese College Graduates” (with Hongbin Li, Xinzheng Shi, and Binzhen Wu), Journal of Development Economics, 99(2), November 2012, 513–520.
“Does Attending Elite Colleges Pay in China?” (with Hongbin Li, Xinzheng Shi, and Binzhen Wu), Journal of Comparative Economics, 40(1), February 2012, 78–88.
“The Human Cost of China’s Industrial Growth” (with Hongbin Li and Wenqing Pan), China Economic Review, 22(3), September 2011, 373-382.
“The Government’s Role in China’s Olympic Glory” (with Hongbin Li and Qian Wang), Applied Economics, 41(25), November 2009, 3313-3318.
“Political Connections, Financing and Firm Performance: Evidence from Chinese Private Firms” (with Hongbin Li, Qian Wang, and Li-An Zhou), Journal of Development Economics, 87(2), October 2008, 283-299.
“Why Do Entrepreneurs Enter Politics? Evidence from China” (with Hongbin Li and Junsen Zhang), Economic Inquiry, 44(3), July 2006, 559–578.