Max Müller

I am a PhD Student at the Bonn Graduate School of Economics supervised by Thomas Dohmen, Christopher Roth and Orazio Attanasio.

My research lies at the intersection of labor and behavioral economics. I study how beliefs and expectations shape labor market outcomes of firms and individuals.

In the spring semester of 2026, I am visiting UC Berkeley. I previously completed a research visit at Yale University. 

If you have any comments, thoughts, ideas, or questions related to my research, don’t hesitate to reach out! 

Email: max.mueller@uni-bonn.de | max.mueller@yale.edu | max.mueller@berkeley.edu

CV: here

Abstract: Labor supply depends on wages and amenities, while standard labor market models implicitly assume that firms hold accurate beliefs about workers' amenity preferences. In a large-scale survey of workers and firms in Germany, we measure workers' valuations of amenities and firms' beliefs about workers' valuations. We find that firms systematically underestimate workers' valuation of all amenities, resulting in their costly underprovision. Investigating the underlying mechanism, we show that misperceptions are driven by interpersonal projection bias: managers project their own preferences---they value amenities less---onto workers. Through the lens of a simple model of imperfect competition, we show that firm misperceptions result in labor shortages for biased firms and increase the market power of unbiased firms.

Abstract: Do refugees face systematic disadvantages in the apprenticeship market, and what measures can mitigate them? We address these questions using a discrete choice experiment involving representatives from over 1,000 firms in Germany. Our findings indicate that refugees are less likely to be accepted for vocational training than their native counterparts, even when equally or more qualified in terms of formal education. However, this gap can be significantly reduced through two key mechanisms: signaling soft skills such as discipline and motivation, and implementing public policy programs that enhance job-specific language proficiency and employment readiness.