Research

Abstract: This paper examines whether COVID-19-induced work-from-home (WFH) reshaped household labour division. Using American Time Use Survey data with a shift-share instrument, I find WFH fathers substantially increased childcare during school closures, enabling mothers to expand paid work. These behavioural changes persisted post-pandemic, with fathers maintaining higher involvement in housework and childcare. Current Population Survey panel evidence reveals that maternal employment gains occurred only among mothers with prior work experience in flexible occupations, while those in rigid occupations showed no response. These findings reveal that pandemic-driven WFH disrupted traditional household specialisation, but translation to maternal employment required both labour force attachment and workplace flexibility.

Abstract: Zambia’s women’s rights laws advanced through two waves of reforms, driven by international treaties in 1985 and 2006. Yet customary courts, handling about 90% of land and family disputes, largely ignore these legal gains. Zambia’s ranking on the World Bank Women, Business and the Law index has declined, highlighting the gap between formal reforms and customary practice, and underscoring the external drivers and domestic challenges of gender legal change.

Abstract: We compile data on US sanctions under the Magnitsky Act from 2017 to 2024 and find that such sanctions are weakly corelated with human rights abuses in the home countries of the sanctioned persons but are uncorrelated with perceptions of corruption. 

Abstract: We use a comprehensive dataset of economic sanctions over the past 30 years to show that US unilateral sanctions are often off the mark, while United Nations sanctions tend to be well-targeted. Sanctions that target democratic stability and conflict resolution are best correlated with their stated goals. 

Abstract: This project replicates and extends the Law and Finance framework by constructing harmonized indices of shareholder and creditor protection using World Bank datasets covering more than 200 economies through 2024. We find that common law countries continue to exhibit deeper and more accessible financial markets, while civil law countries have recently improved in creditor protection. We also show that stronger investor rights are associated with higher levels of financial development across multiple dimensions. 

Abstract: Using data from the European Health Interview Survey (EHIS) and the California Health Interview Survey (CHIS), this paper finds that soda taxes reduce BMI among at-risk adults, with particularly pronounced effects among those under age 30. The broader impact observed in Europe appears to result from industry reformulation under a tiered tax structure, while the effect among younger adults is primarily driven by reduced consumption, reflecting their greater price sensitivity.