My Research
Job market paper
The power of recognising effort
Abstract
Social environments can shape individuals’ behaviour, psychological well-being, and performance, yet relatively little is known about whether these environments can be influenced by recognising the efforts of those who contribute to them. I examine this question in schools, where efforts to foster supportive learning environments often receive limited formal recognition. Specifically, I test whether recognising existing efforts toward a well-being-oriented learning environment can affect students’ psychosocial well-being, perceptions of the school environment, and academic performance. In an RCT in 71 government secondary schools in Rajasthan, teachers, principals, and students in treated schools received visible, non-financial recognition for their existing efforts to foster a supportive school environment. One month after the intervention, treated students report greater belonging and prosociality, more positive perceptions of themselves and their peers, higher hope and reflective capacity, and lower perceived stress. Three months after the intervention, treated students score 0.20 standard deviations higher on an independently administered, low-stakes Mathematics assessment. By eight months, treated students also report experiencing stronger collective agency and a more supportive learning environment. These results show that recognising existing efforts can improve the social environment, psychosocial well-being, and academic performance even without conditioning recognition on academic achievement.
RCT registry: https://www.socialscienceregistry.org/trials/16415
The time sensitivity of aspirational interventions: evidence from a role-modeling RCT (with J. Wen, D. Turchet, and M. Schröder)
Plos One, 2026
Abstract
This paper investigates the short-run effects of an aspiration-raising intervention delivered as part of a randomized controlled trial among postgraduate students at a UK university during the Covid-19 pandemic. We document suggestive evidence, that a video-based role-modeling intervention led to an immediate increase in aspirations and a delayed increase in self-reported effort. However, both effects dissipated within a few weeks. Our findings suggest that timing and reinforcement are important considerations for the sustained effectiveness of aspiration-building strategies.
RCT registry: https://www.socialscienceregistry.org/trials/6520
Selected works in progress
Inspirational role models and student achievement: Evidence from a randomised experiment in India
(Submitted)
Abstract
Internal constraints are barriers for academic performance. I evaluate a low-cost role models intervention delivered through a short film featuring fictitious but highly relatable protagonists. Using a randomized controlled trial conducted among 452 grade-4 students in private schools in India, I examine the effects on students’ hope, effort, and academic performance. Students are randomly assigned to watch a short-film that is produced as a part of the experiment. The intervention leads to immediate and sustained increases in students’ hope and effort. English test scores improve by 0.11 standard deviations six weeks after exposure. I also find suggestive evidence of longer-run improvements in Mathematics exam performance two years later, but these estimates should be interpreted with caution due to attrition and pandemic-related disruptions. The findings suggest that carefully designed role model interventions can meaningfully shift student behaviour and improve educational outcomes at low cost.
RCT registry: https://www.socialscienceregistry.org/trials/4454
Media:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1z0BCaZ-VEQ&t=63s
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=33gR1xA4zAU&t=137s
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ceg8-u8dlF8
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OjkqBR7ql5M
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qJtgUrMvcXY&t=1s
Reflection and mental health: Experimental evidence from Germany (with J. Wen and J. Vornberger)
(R&R - Journal of Behavioral and Experimental Economics)
Abstract
Despite increasing mental health problems and an existing care gap among university students, cost-effective solutions to bridge this gap are still lacking. Using a reflection intervention, we conduct a randomized controlled trial with undergraduate students in Germany. As part of a thought experiment, the treatment group reflected for ten minutes on questions related to stressors and their remedies. Combining survey and administrative data we find a significant improvement in students’ mindful behavior, mental health and well-being as well as perseverance in performance. Our results show the self-empowering potential of a low-cost soft-touch intervention in students to aid their mindful behavior, mental health and well-being as well as performance and thus demonstrate one way universities as institutions can provide support.
RCT registry: https://www.socialscienceregistry.org/trials/10277
Role models, edutainment, and virtual tours: Experimental evidence from India (with J. Wen)
(Submitted)
Abstract
We test the impact of an audio-visual learning tool on a cohort of primary school students in India. In a randomised controlled trial, we split a sample of students into two treatment groups and a pure control group. Students in the first treatment group were exposed to a short virtual tour of statues of role models. The other group watched a video on the same role models comprising of their images from the curriculum. Both arms had an identical audio narrative. Immediately after the 6-minute intervention, students from the virtual tour treatment performed better than the image-based treatment and control group in a memory test. We detect improvements in academic performance in Math and Computer for the virtual tour group after a month. These effects reduce in size but they are sustained after 6-months.
RCT registry: https://www.socialscienceregistry.org/trials/8055
Labour market and mental health: Evidence from China (with Jinglin Wen)
(R&R - Journal of Health Economics)
The effects of reflective journaling on mental health and learning outcomes of undergraduates in India
(in the field)
RCT registry: https://www.socialscienceregistry.org/trials/18991
Building agency and bridging inequalities in school: evidence from Universal Growth Curriculum (UGrow) in India (with Christina Felfe and Andrea Hartmann)
(Inception phase)