Work in progress
Healthy Crops vs. Healthy Kids. The Effects of Pesticide Use on Children’s Health and Human Capital in California.
w/ Ludovica Gazzè, Claudia Persico and Joanna VenatorIn preparation
Dance for the Rain of Pay for Insurance? An Empirical Analysis of the Italian Crop-Insurance market
w/ Luca Citino and Matteo ParadisiAbstract: Despite the increased frequency of extreme weather events, the use of climate-related crop insurance contracts in European countries remains low. We investigate the economic factors behind these low coverage rates by linking Italian administrative data on insurance purchases and damage claims to high-frequency georeferenced data on weather events. We focus on two potential explanations: inefficient pricing of insurance contracts due to adverse selection and choice frictions that create a wedge between the value of insurance and actual demand. To identify adverse selection, we leverage a 2014 reform that lowered the cap for premium subsidies in EU countries. This policy caused a reduction in demand and an increase in average costs for insurers, indicating adverse selection. Regarding frictions, we document through a staggered difference-in-differences design that firms are more likely to buy insurance when faced with “salient” extreme events, suggesting that farmers are imperfectly informed about the value they assign to insurance. We conclude by discussing how current price subsidies may be less effective than insurance mandates in light of these uncovered market failures.Some (don’t) Like it Hot. Persistent High Temperatures Increase Depression and Anxiety
w/ Giulia MartinelliAbstract: We study the impacts of high temperatures on milder mental health outcomes using clinical administrative data from a National Health Service of England program treating anxiety and depression. Leveraging monthly variation in temperatures at the English Clinical Commissioning Group level, we find that extremely hot temperatures, i.e. above 34$\celsius$, lead to an increase in the demand for mental health support, assessments, and treatments by approximately 10, 15 and 12 per cent, respectively. We also show that when temperature shocks are long-lasting and result in heat waves longer than ten days, the effects are particularly pronounced. These results are not affected by individuals' adaptive response to similar heat stress experienced in the previous month or year. The heterogeneity analysis suggests that, when avoidance options are limited (absence of air conditioning), the temperature impacts are larger for individuals with higher socio-economic status. Our back-of-the-envelope calculation indicates that the monetary health costs associated with heat stress are substantial.Degrees of Deception: How Score Manipulation Mitigates Temperature’s Impact on Student Performance
w/Rosario Ballatore and Daniela VuriAbstract: Using Italian data on the universe of mandatory tests conducted in a low-stakes setting without air conditioning, we investigate the effect of temperature on student performance, with a particular focus on how manipulation distorts causal estimates of temperature effects on test scores. While high temperatures adversely affect student performance, we find that score manipulation also increases with temperature within a specific range. Leveraging the random assignment of inspectors to schools as a natural experiment, we estimate the effect of temperature on test scores net of manipulation. We find that achievement declines at lower temperature thresholds when manipulation is accounted for, implying a larger number of affected students than previously estimated. Additionally, individual survey responses collected during the tests indicate that very high temperatures induce shifts in students' emotional states, affecting self-esteem and anxiety levels.