Olga Shurchkov

About me

I'm a Professor of Economics at Wellesley College, a Research Fellow at the Institute of Labor Economics (IZA), and the Paula Phillips Bernstein ‘58 Faculty Director of the Madeleine K. Albright Institute for Global Affairs.  My research is primarily in behavioral labor economics, focusing on differences in economic outcomes according to individual characteristics, such as gender, appearance, and race. Broadly, my work can be subdivided into two themes based on methodology. The first uses controlled experiments to identify the nuanced ways in which (typically incorrect) stereotypes can lead to differences in choices and ultimately cause inequalities in labor market outcomes. The second theme uses surveys and observational data to get at the same set of issues, focusing on the dynamics of the gender gap in academia. Across both types of research, I aim to identify institutional structures that prevent a movement toward equality and look for policies that can help to close gender gaps by changing institutions and preexisting (biased) beliefs, rather than by fundamentally changing women's (or men's) preferences. 

I am an Associate Editor at the Journal of Economic Behavior and Organization. I also serve as the Associate Chair and Director of Mentoring on the Board of the Committee on the Status of Women in the Economics Profession (CSWEP) and on the Board of Editors of Feminist Economics.

My work has been featured in the Washington Post, the Boston Globe, and the Economist. I received my PhD in Economics from MIT in 2008. 

My CV is available here and my Google Scholar page can be found here.

email: olga.shurchkov[at]wellesley[dot]edu

twitter: @OlgaShurchkov