SUBHA MANI
https://sites.google.com/site/subhamani7/home
September 2023
Contact details
Department of Economics
441 East Fordham Road
Dealy Hall, E 520
Bronx, New York 10458
Email: smani@fordham.edu
Phone: 215-450-4000
Employment
2023-: Professor, Department of Economics, Fordham University
2014-: Associate Professor (with tenure), Department of Economics, Fordham University
2008-2014: Assistant Professor, Department of Economics, Fordham University
Affiliations
2022-: Associate Editor, Journal of Economic Behavior and Organization
2022-: Associate Editor, Journal of Population Economics
2021-: Associate Editor, Oxford Open Economics
2021-: Faculty affiliate, Department of African and African American Studies (AAAS) at Fordham University
2020-: Faculty affiliate, Research Consortium on Disability at Fordham University
2020-: Research Fellow, Global Labor Organization (GLO)
2014-: Research Fellow, IZA, Bonn, Germany
2012-: Research Affiliate, Population Studies Center, University of Pennsylvania
2011-: Research Associate, Center for International Policy Studies, Fordham University
2008-: Faculty affiliate, International Political Economy and Development (IPED) program at Fordham University
Education
2002-2008: Ph.D. Economics, University of Southern California
2002-2003: M.A. Economics, University of Southern California
2000-2002: M.A. Economics, Mumbai University, India
1997-2000: B.A. Economics (Honors), University of Delhi, India
Areas of specialization
Development Economics, Labor Economics, Health, Education, Applied Microeconomics, Applied Econometrics, Field Experiments, Program Evaluation
Published and forthcoming papers
[26] Dasgupta, Utteeyo, Subha Mani, Smriti Sharma and Saurabh Singhal. “Social Identity, Behavior, and Personality: Evidence from India”. The Journal of Development Studies, forthcoming. DOI: 10.1080/00220388.2022.2139607
[25] Dasgupta, Utteeyo, Subha Mani, Smriti Sharma and Saurabh Singhal. (2022). “Effects of Peers and Rank on Cognition, Preferences and Personality”, The Review of Economics and Statistics, 104(3): 587-601.
[24] Justine Hervé, Subha Mani, Jere R. Behrman, Arindam Nandi, Anjana Sankhil Lamkang, and Ramanan Laxminarayan. (2022). “Gender Gaps in Cognitive and Noncognitive Skills Among Adolescents in India”, Journal of Economic Behavior and Organization, 193: 66-97.
[23] Agarwal, Neha, Hans-Peter Kohler and Subha Mani. (2021). “Path Dependence in Disability”, Journal of African Economies, 1-26.
[22] Yap, Jaclyn, Vandana Chaudhry, Chandan Kumar Jha, Subha Mani and Sophie Mitra. (2020). “Are Responses to the Pandemic Inclusive? A Rapid Virtual Audit of COVID-19 Press Briefings in LMICs”, World Development, 136, 105-122.
[21] Dasgupta, Utteeyo, Subha Mani, and Prakarsh Singh. (2020). “Searching for Religious Discrimination among Childcare Workers”, Review of Development Economics, 24 (2): 362-382.
[20] Dasgupta, Utteeyo, Subha Mani, Smriti Sharma, and Saurabh Singhal. (2019). “Internal and External Validity: Comparing Two Simple Risk Elicitation Tasks”, Journal of Behavioral and Experimental Economics, 81: 39-46.
[19] Subha Mani, Jere R. Behrman, Sheikh Galab, Prudhvikar Reddy & Young Lives Determinants and Consequences of Child Growth Project Team. (2019). “Impact of the NREGS on Children’s Intellectual Human Capital”, The Journal of Development Studies, 56:5, 929-945.
[18] Majid, Farhan, Jere Behrman and Subha Mani. (2019). “Short-term and long-term Distributional Consequences of Prenatal Malnutrition and Stress: Using Ramadan as a Natural Experiment”, BMJ Global Health. 4:e001185.
[17] Dasgupta, Utteeyo, Subha Mani, Smriti Sharma and Saurabh Singhal. (2019). “Can Gender Differences in Distributional Preferences Explain Gender Gaps in Competition”, Journal of Economic Psychology, 70: 1-11.
[16] Jain, Tarun, Pushkar Maitra, and Subha Mani. (2019). “Barriers to Skill Acquisition: Evidence from English Training in India”, World Development, 114: 314-325.
[15] Mani, Subha, Sophie Mitra and Usha Sambamoorthi. (2018). “Dynamics in Health and Employment: Evidence from Indonesia”, World Development, 104: 297-309.
[14] Dasgupta, Utteeyo, Lata Gangadharan, Pushkar Maitra and Subha Mani. (2017). “Searching for Preference Stability in a State Dependent World”, Journal of Economic Psychology, 62: 17-32.
[13] Maitra, Pushkar and Subha Mani. (2017). “Learning and Earning – Evidence from a Randomized Evaluation in India”, Labour Economics (Special Issue on Field Experiments in Labor Economics and Social Policies), 45: 116-130.
[12] Katapally, Tarun R., Shifalika Goenka, Jasmin Bhawra, Subha Mani, Ghattu V. Krishnaveni, Sarah H. Kehoe, Anjana S. Lamkang, Manu Raj and Kathleen McNutt. (2016). “Results from the India 2016 Report Card on Physical Activity for Children and Youth”, Journal of Physical Activity and Health, 13 (Suppl 2), S176-S182.
[11] Georgiadis, Andreas, Liza Benny, Benjamin T. Crookston, Le Thuc Duc, Priscila Hermida, Subha Mani, Tassew Woldehanna, Aryeh D. Stein, and Jere R. Behrman. (2016). “Growth Trajectories from Conception through Middle Childhood and Cognitive Achievement at Age 8 Years: Evidence from Four Low- and Middle-Income Countries”, SSM - Population Health, 2: 43-54.
[10] Andersen, Christopher T., Sarah A. Reynolds, Jere R. Behrman, Benjamin T. Crookston, Kirk A. Dearden, Javier Escobal, Subha Mani, Alan Sánchez, and Aryeh D. Stein, and Lia CH. Fernald. (2015). "Participation in the Juntos Conditional Cash Transfer Program in Peru Is Associated with Changes in Child Anthropometric Status but Not Language Development or School Achievement", Journal of Nutrition, 145: 396-405.
[9] Dasgupta, Utteeyo, Lata Gangadharan, Pushkar Maitra, Subha Mani and Samyukta Subramanian. (2015). “Choosing to be Trained: Do Behavioral Traits Matter?”, Journal of Economic Behavior and Organization, 110: 145-159.
[8] Behrman, Jere R., Whitney Schott, Subha Mani, Benjamin T. Crookston, Kirk Dearden, Le Thuc Duc, Lia C. H. Fernald, and Aryeh D. Stein. (2017). “Intergenerational Transmission of Poverty and Inequality: Parental Resources and Schooling Attainment and Children’s Human Capital in Ethiopia, India, Peru, and Vietnam”, Economic Development and Cultural Change, 65 (4): 657-697.
[7] Dasgupta, Utteeyo and Subha Mani. (2015). “Only Mine or All Ours: Do Stronger Entitlements Affect Altruistic Choices in the Household?”, World Development, 67: 363-375.
[6] Dasgupta, Utteeyo and Subha Mani. (2014). “An Interactive Introduction to Randomized Evaluation.” Perspectives on Economic Education Research, 8(1): 1-73.
[5] Dasgupta, Utteeyo and Subha Mani. (2013). “Altruism in the Household: A Pilot Study.” Economic and Political Weekly, xlviii(33): 17-19.
[4] Mani, Subha. (2014). “Socioeconomic Determinants of Child Health - Empirical Evidence from Indonesia”, Asian Economic Journal, 28(1): 81-104.
[3] Mani, Subha, John Hoddinott and John Strauss. (2013). “Determinants of Schooling – Empirical Evidence from Rural Ethiopia”, Journal of African Economies, 22(5): 693-731.
[2] Mani, Subha, John Hoddinott and John Strauss. (2012). “Long-term Impact of Investments in Early Schooling — Empirical Evidence from Rural Ethiopia”, Journal of Development Economics, 99(2): 292-299.
[1] Mani, Subha. (2012). “Is there Complete, Partial, or No Recovery from Childhood Malnutrition? – Empirical Evidence from Indonesia”, Oxford Bulletin of Economics and Statistics, 74(5): 691-715.
Working papers
[1] “Improving Parenting Practices and Child Health – Experimental Evidence from Sierra Leone” (with Anjali Chandra, Heather Dolphin, Meredith Dyson and Yembeh Marah). IZA working paper no. 14054.
[2] “Games of Prejudice: Experiments at the Extensive and Intensive Margin” (with Utteeyo Dasgupta, Joe Vecci and Tomáš Želinsky). IZA working paper no. 13085.
[3] “Non-monetary Incentives in Education – Experimental Evidence from India” (with Aanchal Bagga, Pradyumna Bhattacharjee, Utteeyo Dasgupta, and Kumar Vivek).
[4] “Do Public Works Programs Have Sustained Impacts? A Review of Experimental Evidence from LMICs” (with Aanchal Bagga, Marcus Holmlund, Nausheen Khan, Eric Mvukiyehe and Patrick Premand). World Bank Policy Research Working Paper no. 10471.
[5] “Conscientiousness Matters: How does Personality affect Labor Market Outcomes?” (with Justine Hervé and Helene Purcell).
Work in progress
[1] “Are Textbooks Missing? Evidence from Audits in India” (with Sushmita Narayana Aghalaya, Pradyumna Bhattacharjee, Pranava Kadiyala and Meghna Sharma).
[2] “Finding and Lifting Up the Poor and Vulnerable: A Field Experiment on Targeting Mechanisms and Effects of a Public Works Program in Rural DRC” (with Eric Mvukiyehe). AEA RCT ID: AEARCTR-0007874.
[3] “Do Public Works Programs Work for the Poor? Evidence from Six Randomized Control Trials in the Middle East and Africa” (with Patrick Premand and Eric Mvukiyehe).
[4] “Long-term Impacts of Improving Gender Attitudes Among Children” (with Jere R. Behrman, Utteeyo Dasgupta, Ramanan Laxminarayan, and Arindam Nandi). AEA RCT ID: AEARCTR-0000518.
[5] “Carrot or Stick: How to Improve Technology Adoption in Education?” (with Pradyumna Bhattacharjee and Meghna Sharma). AEA RCT ID: AEARCTR-0008047.
[6] “Impact of COVID-19 on Mental Health” (with Deepshikha Batheja, Jere R. Behrman, Ramanan Laxminarayan and Arindam Nandi). AEA RCT ID: AEARCTR-0009419.
[7] “Spillover effects of Public Works Programs on Children – Evidence from Multicountry Field Experiments in Africa and the Middle East” (with Ana Dammert, Eric Mvukiyehe and Katherine Theiss).
[8] “Do Internships Payoff? Experiments on Actual and Perceived Returns to Internship Experience in NYC” (with Jaclyn Yap and Kirsten Anastasio).
[9] “Impact of Worker Autonomy on Performance, Job Satisfaction and Public Goods Contribution” (with Andrew Souther and Utteeyo Dasgupta).
[10] “Long-term Impacts of Displacement during Early Childhood – Evidence from Internally Displaced Population in Azerbaijan” (with Timothy Kell-Fien, Eric Mvukiyehe, Olga Shemyakina and Saurabh Singhal).
Grants received (~190k, projects received ~3+ million USD)
2021: Institute of Humane Studies, New York, PI, $1000
2020: Institute of Humane Studies, New York, PI, $1000
2018: Social Innovation Research Fellow, PI, $7000
2017: Faculty Research Grant, Fordham University, PI, $6500
2017 and 2019: REACH Trust Fund, Co-PI (PI, Kumar Vivek) (grant awarded = 1+million USD)
2016: Faculty Research Grant, Fordham University, Co-PI (Marc Conte, PI), $6,500
2015: Faculty Research Grant, Fordham University, PI, $6,392
2014-2019: International Initiative for Impact Evaluation (3ie), Co-investigator (Ramanan Laxminarayan and Jere R. Behrman, PIs), $50,612 (grant awarded =1million USD)
2013: International Growth Center – India Central, PI, $15,500
2013: International Initiative for Impact Evaluation (3ie), Co-investigator (Ramanan Laxminarayan and Jere R. Behrman, PIs), $3,400
2013: Grand Challenges Canada, Co-investigator (Jere R. Behrman, PI), $32,280 (grant awarded =1million USD)
2012: International Growth Center – India Central, Co-PI (Pushkar Maitra, PI), $15,555
2011: Faculty Research Grant, Fordham University, PI, $6,450
2011: Fordham Undergraduate Research Grant, Fordham University, PI, $7,325
2010: Faculty Research Grant, Monash University, Co-PI (Pushkar Maitra, PI), $18,338
2010: Faculty Research Grant, Fordham University, PI, $3,600
Fellowships and awards
Social Innovation Research Fellow, Fordham University, 2019
Merit award, Fordham University, several years for continuous research output
Population Association of American (PAA) best poster prize (with Utteeyo Dasgupta), 2013
Faculty Fellowship, Fordham University, Spring 2012
Fellowship, College of Letters, Arts, and Sciences, USC, 2007-2008
Merit Fellowship, College of Letters, Arts, and Sciences, USC, 2006-2007
Fellowship Stipend Top Up, College of Letters, Arts, and Sciences, USC, 2007
Graduate Assistantship, USC, 2003-2006
Invited presentations and conference acceptances
2018-: Florida International University (scheduled Feb 2023), Southern Economic Association Meetings in Florida (scheduled Nov 2022), 100 Years of Economic Development at Cornell University, IIM Kolkata, Plenary speaker at XIM University virtual, SEEDEC virtual, Virginia Tech virtual, University of Washington at Pullman virtual, University of Notre Dame virtual, SEA virtual, Fordham University virtual, The World Bank virtual, Seminar on the Economics of Discrimination and Disparities virtual, VLAC Development Seminar virtual, NEUDC at Dartmouth virtual, Rutgers University at New Brunswick, Rutgers University at Newark (cancelled during COVID), PAA meetings (cancelled during COVID), Women in Economics Conference at Princeton University, Women in Economics Conference at Columbia University, NEUDC at Northwestern, SEA at Florida, Hunter College Panel Discussion, Baruch College, Nordic Conference in Development Economics in Helsinki, Experimental Science Association Conference in Berlin, Southern Economic Association Meetings in Washington, DC.
2013-2017: Georgia Institute of Technology, Columbia University, University of Connecticut, Fordham University, Population Council, PAA meetings in Chicago, Nordic Conference in Development Economics in Gothenburg, Calcutta University, ISI-Delhi, University of Pennsylvania, IZA/Volkswagen Foundation Workshop, Experimental Science Association Conference in Richmond, Virginia, NEUDC at Cornell, Hunter College, CUNY, Southern Economic Association, LAC-DEV Conference at Vassar College, Fordham University Development Economics Conference, 6th GREThA International Conference on Economic Development in France, Nordic Conference in Development Economics in Norway, UNU-WIDER conference on Human Capital and Growth in Helsinki, PAA meetings in Washington, DC, Rutgers University, University of Pennsylvania, Monash University, United Nations University-World Institute for Development Economics Research conference on Discrimination, Shiv Nadar University, Public Health Foundation of India, 3ie - International Initiative for Impact Evaluation, ISI-IGC annual conference, Indian School of Business, Mumbai University, PAA meetings in San Diego, AEA meetings in Boston, Wharton Business School, Manhattan College, SEA meetings in Atlanta, PAA meetings in Boston.
2007-2013: Rutgers University, University of Pennsylvania, Wharton Business School, City College of New York, Amherst College, SEA meetings in Florida, NEUDC in Boston, SOLE in Boston, PAA meetings in New Orleans, AEA meetings in San Diego, University of Southern California, Hunter College, University of Pennsylvania, Vassar College, National Conference on Teaching Economics and Research in Economic Education, Stanford Institute for Economic Policy Research, California, 71st International Atlantic Economic Conference in Greece, PACDEV in Berkeley, The 7th Midwest International Economic Development Conference, Minneapolis, Minnesota, Jadavpur University, PAA meetings in Michigan, Rutgers University, Gettysburg College, Fordham University, Applied Microeconometrics workshop in Wisconsin, PAA meetings in New Orleans, NEUDC at Harvard, University of Melbourne, Monash University, United Nations University-World Institute for Development Economics Research meetings in Ghana.
Professional experience
Consultant, The World Bank, New Delhi, India
Consultant, The World Bank, Washington, D.C, USA
Consultant, Catholic Relief Services, Washington, D.C., USA
Consultant, UNU-WIDER
Consultant, Boston University
Consultant, University of Pennsylvania
Review Panel for the session titled “Household and Labor Economics” in the Agricultural and Applied Economic Association Meetings in Seattle, Washington, 2012
Member, UNDP Equator Prize Technical Advisory Committee, 2011
Speaker in a one-day workshop on “Program Evaluation” at the Salesian Mission, 2009-2011, New York
Editorial Assistant, Economic Development and Cultural Change, August 2005-August 2006
Consultant, United Nations University-World Institute for Development Economics Research (UNU-WIDER), August 2006-May 2007
Summer Intern, Food Consumption and Nutrition Division, International Food Policy Research Institute (IFPRI), June 2005-August 2005
Teaching
Basic Microeconomics (Econ 1200 for undergraduate students), Fordham University
Economics of Development (Econ 3210 for undergraduate students), Fordham University
Applied Econometrics (Econ 6910 for master’s students), Fordham University
Development Economics (Econ 6440 for PhD and master’s students), Fordham University
Applied Microeconometrics (Econ 6970 for PhD students), Fordham University
Health and Development (Econ 5600 for master’s students), Fordham University
Research in Economics (Econ 8600 for PhD students), Fordham University
Economic Development for International Affairs, Columbia University, Spring 2018
Journal refereeing
The Review of Economics and Statistics, Economic Journal, Journal of Human Resources, Journal of Development Economics, Economics of Education Review, Economic Development and Cultural Change, Health Policy and Planning, Journal of African Economies, Journal of Policy Modeling, Growth and Change, Economics Bulletin, African Journal of Agricultural Research, Singapore Economic Review, American Economic Journal: Applied Economics, Economics and Human Biology, Journal of Population Economics, Social Science and Medicine, International Journal on Biodiversity Watch, BE Journal of Economic Analysis and Policy, Journal of Human Capital, World Development, BMC Nutrition, Journal of Economic Psychology, Journal of Development Studies, Journal of International Development, BMC Pediatrics, Experimental Economics, Education Economics, Journal of Development Effectiveness, Review of Development Economics, Applied Economic Letters, IZA Journal of Labor Economics, LABOUR: Review of Labour Economics and Industrial Relations, Maternal and Child Nutrition, The Australian Journal of Agricultural and Resource Economics, International Journal of Early Childhood, Education Finance and Policy, Oxford Bulletin of Economics and Statistics, Oxford Development Studies, Journal of Health Economics, Journal of Economic Behavior and Organization, Journal of Human Development and Capabilities, Journal of Comparative Economics, Applied Economic Perspectives & Policy.
For many of these journals, I have referred on multiple occasions.
Service
University level
[1] Member, Faculty Fellowship Advisory Committee, 2013
[2] Presenter, Fall Parent’s Day event, 2012
[3] Presenter, President’s Spring Preview event, 2010
[4] Member, Fulbright interview panel, 2009-11
[5] Participant, New Faculty Mentoring, 2008-2009
[6] Member, Hiring Committee for the Chief Research Officer, 2015
[7] Member, Academic Affairs Committee, 2019-present
[8] Reviewer, Fordham Undergraduate Research Grant applications, several years
Department level
[1] Co-organizer, Department of Economics, Seminar Series, Fall 2010-2021
[2] Organizer, Department of Economics, Seminar Series, Fall 2011
[3] Manager, Department of Economics, Discussion Paper Series, Fall 2012-15
[4] Member, Hiring Committees – Development Economics and International Economics, 2011
[5] Member, Hiring Committee – Development Economics, 2012
[6] Member, Hiring Committee – Urban Economics, 2017
[7] Member, Hiring Committee – Health Economics, 2022
[8] Economics major adviser, several years
[9] Honors Thesis Mentoring: Tyler Boston, Rose Puntel, Alex Levine, and Andrew Souther
[10] International Political Economy and Development: Co-taught workshop on program evaluation and co-led study on workforce development for the Salesian Missions (with Sophie Mitra) 2011-2012
[11] Field Trips: Sarah Scarcelli, Tyler Boston and Peter Lachman travelled with me to India for primary data collection in New Delhi, India
[12] Ph.D. Admissions Committee Member, 2014-present
[13] Masters Admissions Committee Member, 2014-present
[14] Fordham Undergraduate Research Mentoring, 2012, 2015, 2019, 2020, and 2021
[15] Ph.D. advisor for: Jason Mccormack (Bank of America), Susan Kibe (Fairfield University), Rafia Zafar (CUNY), Mitali Pradhan (Farmingdale College), Helene Purcell (University of Pennsylvania), Anjali Chandra, and Jaclyn Yap
[16] Ph.D. dissertation reader for: Maria Davalos (The World Bank), Frank Canovatchel, Katie Jajtner (University of Wisconsin, Madison), Hoolda Kim (Black States University), Wei Chen, and Justine Hervé (Stevens Institute of Technology)
[17] External member on PhD dissertation for Namrata Tognatta at the University of Pennsylvania (The World Bank)
Media Coverage
[1] Policy briefs of my research that appeared at www.ideasforindia.in:
[f] https://www.ideasforindia.in/topics/human-development/vocational-education-a-means-to-an-end.html
[2] My research paper was blogged by David McKenzie at the World Bank Impact Evaluation Blog: http://blogs.worldbank.org/impactevaluations/the-impact-of-vocational-training-for-young-women-in-delhi
[3] Pedagogy in Action: the SERC portal for educators includes a description of the classroom games published in the pedagogy journal, Perspectives on Economic Education Research: http://serc.carleton.edu/sp/library/experiments/examples/70039.html
[4] Phone surveys in developing countries need an abundance of caution appeared on 3ie blogs: https://www.3ieimpact.org/blogs/phone-surveys-developing-countries-need-abundance-caution
[5] VoxDev: https://voxdev.org/topic/health-education/rank-and-peer-effects-higher-education-evidence-india
References
John Strauss, Professor of Economics
Department of Economics
University of Southern California
KAP 300, 3620 South Vermont Avenue, Los Angeles, CA 90089
+1 213 740-7698, jstrauss@usc.edu
Jere R. Behrman, William R. Kenan, Jr. Professor of Economics
Department of Economics and Sociology
University of Pennsylvania
229 McNeil Building, 3718 Locust Walk, Philadelphia, PA 19104
+1 215 898-7704, jbehrman@econ.upenn.edu
John Hoddinott, H.E. Babcock Professor of Food and Nutrition Economics and Policy
Professor of Applied Economics and Management
Professor of Nutritional Sciences
Cornell University
Room 305, Savage Hall, 410 Thurston Ave., Ithaca, NY 14853
+1 607-255-8594, jfh246@cornell.edu
Pushkar Maitra, Professor of Economics
Department of Economics
Monash University
Clayton campus, VIC 3800
Australia
+61 3 9905 5832, pushkar.maitra@monash.edu