Research
Research
My research focuses primarily on health and human capital using a combination of causal inference and machine learning methods to understand the impacts and unintended consequences of policies, as well as the optimal design, targeting, and implementation of interventions. Within these topics and methods I focus on vulnerable populations. I have studied the opioid crisis and the unintended consequences of policy responses to it; disparities in infant health and how to leverage unique data to predict risk and personalize interventions; how state policy and pharmaceutical innovation work together to reduce the harm associated with substance abuse; the drivers of maternal mortality/morbidity and the impacts of policies aimed at improving maternal care; the human capital impacts of pollution; health service utilization in developing countries; child development; educational reforms; equitable responses to COVID-19, and more. I have published my research in many high-impact outlets and have been cited thousands of times. Below, I categorize each publication into a field by topic area.
Female Participation in Household Decision Making and the Justification of Wife Beating in Bangladesh, with Shahin Alam, Ismail Tareque and others, Journal of Interpersonal Violence, 2018
Lifetime economic impact of the burden of childhood stunting attributable to maternal psychosocial risk factors in 137 low/middle-income countries, with Mary Smith Fawzi, Kathryn Andrews and others, BMJ Global Health, 2019
Utilization and quality: How the quality of care influences demand for obstetric care in Nigeria, with Edward Okeke, PLoS One, 2019.
Examining Interventions to Address Infant Mortality in Allegheny County, Pennsylvania, with Dana Schultz and Susan Lovejoy, RAND Report, 2020
Justification of Wife Beating and Utilization of Antenatal and Delivery Care in Bangladesh, with Ismail Tareque, Shahin Alam and others, Journal of Interpersonal Violence, 2020
Early-life Environment and Human Capital: Evidence from the Philippines, Environment and Development Economics, 2020
Using an Innovative Database and Machine Learning to Predict and Reduce Infant Mortality, with Dana Schultz and Susan Lovejoy, RAND Report, 2021
Big Data Needs and Challenges to Advance Research on Racial and Ethnic Inequities in Maternal and Child Health, with Lilian Perez, Brian Vegetabile, and Regina Shih. Women’s Health Issues, 2021
Tackling Persistent and Large Disparities in Birth Outcomes in Allegheny County, Pennsylvania, with Dana Schultz and Susan Lovejoy. Maternal and Child Health Journal, 2022
Variation in the Infant Health Effects of the Women, Infants, and Children Program by Predicted Risk Using Novel Machine Learning Methods, with Dana Schultz, Susan Lovejoy, and Fuchiang (Rich) Tsui. Health Economics, 2022
The Infant Health Effects of Doulas: Leveraging Big Data and Machine Learning to Inform Cost-Effective Targeting, forthcoming in Health Economics
Predicting Participation in Social Services: Application to Women, Infants, and Children, with Dana Schultz, Susan Lovejoy, and Fuchiang (Rich) Tsui, Working Paper
Inequities in Infant Health Outcomes and the Role of Social Services: Application to Women, Infants, and Children, with Dana Schultz, Susan Lovejoy, and Fuchiang (Rich) Tsui, Working Paper
How Home Visiting Affects Infant Health: Examining Variation by Predicted Risk, with Dana Schultz, Susan Lovejoy, and Fuchiang (Rich) Tsui, Working Paper
Predicting and Reducing Cesarean Births: Assessing the Relationship between Doula Care, the Incidence of Cesarean Births, and the Costs of Hospital Delivery Care, with Dana Schultz, Susan Lovejoy, Megan Andrew, Chloe Bird, and Fuchiang (Rich) Tsui, Working Paper
The Effects of State-level Quality Care Collaboratives on Maternal Mortality and Morbidity, with Megan Andrew and Chloe Bird, Working Paper
Trends in Out-of-Pocket Costs for Naloxone by Drug Brand and Payer in the US, 2010-2018, with David Powell and Rosalie Liccardo Pacula. JAMA Health Forum, 2022
Trends in the Concurrent Prescription of Opioids and Gabapentin in the U.S., 2006 to 2018, with Bradley Stein, Flora Sheng, Beth Roth, David Powell, and Kanaka Shetty. JAMA Internal Medicine, 2022
Trends in Overdose Deaths Involving Gabapentinoids and Z-Drugs in the U.S., with David Powell and Kanaka Shetty. Drug and Alcohol Dependence, 2023
Understanding the Rise in Overdose Deaths Involving Opioids and Non-Opioid Prescription Drugs in the United States, with David Powell and Rosalie Liccardo Pacula. International Journal of Drug Policy, 2023
Investigating the Complexity of Naloxone Distribution: Which Policies Matter for Pharmacies and Potential Recipients, with Rosanna Smart, David Powell, Liccardo Pacula, Rahi Abouk, and Corey Davis. NBER, 2023
Using Policy and Innovation to Improve Life-Saving Access to Naloxone, with Rosalie Pacula and David Powell, forthcoming in NBER Working Paper
Returns to Education in Developing Countries: Evidence from the Living Standards and Measurement Surveys, with Günther Fink and Wafaie Fawzi, Economics of Education Review, 2015
Early Childhood Development and Schooling Attainment: Longitudinal Evidence from British, Finnish and Philippine Birth Cohorts, with Günther Fink, Dana McCoy and others, PLOS One, 2015
Schooling and Wage Income Losses Due to Early Childhood Growth Faltering in Developing Countries: National, Regional and Global Estimates, with Günther Fink, Goodarz Danaei and others, The American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, 2016
Early Childhood Developmental Status in Low- and Middle-Income Countries: National, Regional and Global Estimates, with Dana McCoy, Günther Fink, Wafaie Fawzi and others, PLoS Medicine, 2016
Risk Factors for Childhood Stunting in 137 Developing Countries: A Comparative Risk Assessment Analysis at Global, Regional, and Country Levels, with Goodarz Danaei, Kathryn Andrews and others, PLoS One, 2016
Lifetime economic impact of the burden of childhood stunting attributable to maternal psychosocial risk factors in 137 low/middle-income countries, with Mary Smith Fawzi, Kathryn Andrews and others, BMJ Global Health, 2019
Utilization and quality: How the quality of care influences demand for obstetric care in Nigeria, with Edward Okeke, PLoS One, 2019
Farm Profits, Prices and Household Behavior, with Daniel LaFave and Duncan Thomas, NBER Working Paper, 2020
Justification of Wife Beating and Utilization of Antenatal and Delivery Care in Bangladesh, with Ismail Tareque, Shahin Alam and others, Journal of Interpersonal Violence, 2020
Early-life Environment and Human Capital: Evidence from the Philippines, Environment and Development Economics, 2020
Decision-Making by Households, with V. Joseph Hotz and Duncan Thomas, Working Paper
Returns to Education in Developing Countries: Evidence from the Living Standards and Measurement Surveys, with Günther Fink and Wafaie Fawzi, Economics of Education Review, 2015
Early Childhood Development and Schooling Attainment: Longitudinal Evidence from British, Finnish and Philippine Birth Cohorts, with Günther Fink, Dana McCoy and others, PLOS One, 2015
Continued Progress: Promising Evidence on Personalized Learning with Elizabeth Steiner, Laura Hamilton and John Pane, RAND Report, 2015
Schooling and Wage Income Losses Due to Early Childhood Growth Faltering in Developing Countries: National, Regional and Global Estimates, with Günther Fink, Goodarz Danaei and others, The American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, 2016
Improving Teaching Effectiveness: Final Report: The Intensive Partnerships for Effective Teaching Through 2015-16, with Brian Stecher, Deborah Holtzman, John Engberg and others, RAND Report, 2018
Early-life Environment and Human Capital: Evidence from the Philippines, Environment and Development Economics, 2020
A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis of the Returns to Schooling, with Günther Fink, Working Paper
Early Childhood Developmental Status in Low- and Middle-Income Countries: National, Regional and Global Estimates, with Dana McCoy, Günther Fink, Wafaie Fawzi and others, PLoS Medicine, 2016
Risk Factors for Childhood Stunting in 137 Developing Countries: A Comparative Risk Assessment Analysis at Global, Regional, and Country Levels, with Goodarz Danaei, Kathryn Andrews and others, PLoS One, 2016
Lifetime economic impact of the burden of childhood stunting attributable to maternal psychosocial risk factors in 137 low/middle-income countries, with Mary Smith Fawzi, Kathryn Andrews and others, BMJ Global Health, 2019
Vulnerability, Inequity, and COVID-19: A Portrait of the Pandemic in Allegheny County, with Linnea W. May, Jordan Fischbach, Christine Campigotto, and others. RAND Tool, 2021
Practice Expense Methodology and Data Collection Research and Analysis: Phase II Report, with Lane Burgette, Catherine Cohen, Joachim Hero and others, RAND Report, 2020
Measures and Methodology for International Comparisons of Health Care System Performance, with Laurie Martin, Carl Berdahl, Rachel Burns, and others. RAND Report, 2021
Securing Communications in the Quantum Computing Age: Managing the Risks to Encryption, with Michael J. Vermeer, RAND Report, 2020
Using an Innovative Database and Machine Learning to Predict and Reduce Infant Mortality, with Dana Schultz and Susan Lovejoy, RAND Report, 2021
Risks and Liabilities in Sharing Economy Interactions: Does Data Help or Harm?, with Rebecca Balebako and Carlos Ignacio Gutierrez, Working Paper
Using an Innovative Database and Machine Learning to Predict and Reduce Infant Mortality, with Dana Schultz and Susan Lovejoy, RAND Report, 2021
Machine Learning in Public Policy: The Perils and the Promise of Interpretability, with Brian Vegetabile, Matthew Cefalu, Joseph Pane, and Cheryl Damberg. RAND Perspective, 2022
Variation in the Infant Health Effects of the Women, Infants, and Children Program by Predicted Risk Using Novel Machine Learning Methods, with Dana Schultz, Susan Lovejoy, and Fuchiang (Rich) Tsui. Health Economics, 2022
Using Policy and Innovation to Improve Life-Saving Access to Naloxone, with Rosalie Pacula and David Powell, forthcoming in NBER Working Paper
A Review of Alternative Methods to Inventory Contracted Services in the Department of Defense with Nancy Moore, Molly Dunigan, Frank Camm, and others, RAND Report, 2017
Is an Ounce of Prevention Worth a Pound of Cure? Insights for the United States Army from Historical Analysis of the Costs and Benefits of Efforts to Shape Outcomes in Africa, with Christopher Paul, Colin Clarke, and others, Working Paper
Bank Shot in Short: A Synopsis of Potential U.S. Economic Actions and Reactions During a Conflict with China, with Howard Shatz, Andrew Scobell, and others, Working Paper