Policy & the Economy
September 2, 2020
White Americans Overestimate Racial Progress. But Certain Attempts to Remedy That Could Backfire.
Researchers hoped that having white participants read about racism would help them grasp the true extent of racial gaps in wealth and income. They were wrong.
Ivuoma Ngozi Onyeador, Natalie M. Daumeyer, Julian M. Rucker, Ajua Duker, Michael W. Kraus and Jennifer A. Richeson
September 1, 2020
How Did School Desegregation Shape the Political Ideology of White Students Later in Life?
A new study suggests that, more than four decades later, the impact of these policies on political leanings is apparent.
Ethan Kaplan, Jörg L. Spenkuch and Cody Tuttle
August 26, 2020
We’re Several Months into the COVID Economy. What Have We Learned?
From household spending to the strength of the dollar, an economist sees some clear trends—and signs of what’s to come.
Sergio Rebelo
August 7, 2020
Why Well-Meaning NGOs Sometimes Do More Harm than Good
Studies of aid groups in Ghana and Uganda show why it’s so important to coordinate with local governments and institutions.
Erika Deserranno, Aisha Nansamba, Nancy Qian, Katharine Baldwin, Dean Karlan, Christopher Udry and Ernest Appiah
August 3, 2020
Why Are Social Media Platforms Still So Bad at Combating Misinformation?
Facebook, Twitter, and users themselves have few incentives to distinguish fact from fiction.
Hatim Rahman
July 20, 2020
A Look Inside Chicago’s Economic Recovery Plan
Attracting HQ2s. Expanding mental-health care. A member of the COVID-19 Recovery Task Force explains how the city can emerge both stronger and more equitable.
Benjamin Harris
July 10, 2020
Why We Know So Little about Disparities within the Federal Court System—and How That’s Finally Changing
Millions of hard-to-obtain public court records shed new light on the fairness of the U.S. judiciary.
Adam Pah, David Schwartz, Sarath Sanga, Zachary Clopton, Peter DiCola, Rachel Davis Mersey, Charlotte Alexander, Kristian Hammond and Luis A. Nunes Amaral
June 24, 2020
Why the Next Round of COVID-19 Aid Should Target Industries That Can’t Work from Home
A new study pinpoints which sectors—and which workers in those sectors—suffered the most. Congress should take note.
Dimitris Papanikolaou and Lawrence Schmidt
June 16, 2020
How Is the Pandemic Affecting Antitrust Enforcement?
Deals will be ramping up again soon. Companies shouldn’t expect a free pass from regulators.
Mark McCareins
June 1, 2020
Want Your Employees to Innovate? Trust Them.
R&D teams take more risks—and do better work—when their CEOs have faith in them.
Kieu-Trang Nguyen
May 27, 2020
The Wrong Way to Ramp Up COVID-19 Testing
Robust testing is key to safely reopening the economy. But a new model shows that if testing is not paired with “smart containment,” it could backfire.
Martin Eichenbaum, Sergio Rebelo and Mathias Trabandt
May 11, 2020
The Treasury’s Former Chief Economist Takes Stock of the Pandemic’s Economic Impact
Kellogg’s Janice Eberly zeroes in on a few data points that demonstrate the massive challenge policymakers face.
Janice C. Eberly
May 8, 2020
The U.S. Is Full of Innovative Thinkers. The Government Needs to Marshal All of Them to Fight Covid-19.
Here’s how we can accelerate efforts to reduce the spread, develop treatments, and find a vaccine.
Benjamin F. Jones
May 7, 2020
What Can the Federal Government Do to Get the Economy Back on Track?
A former White House economist weighs the pros and cons of job-retraining programs, aid for states, and universal basic income.
Benjamin Harris
May 5, 2020
Here’s How Americans Are Spending Their Stimulus Checks
Real-time data pinpoints what we’re buying, and who’s spending the fastest.
Scott R. Baker, R Farrokhnia, Steffen Meyer, Michaela Pagel and Constantine Yannelis
May 1, 2020
How to Craft Public-Health Messages That Work
The key? Understanding how fear and confidence shape healthy choices.
Chethana Achar, Nidhi Agrawal and Meng-Hua Hsieh
April 14, 2020
Companies Need to Prepare Today to Survive the Next 18 Months
An economist explains how leaders can try to lower fixed costs, retain workers, and mind their brands.
Sergio Rebelo
April 10, 2020
A Closer Look at Consumer Stockpiling During the Coronavirus Crisis
Researchers examined how households responded to shelter-in-place orders. They uncovered some surprises.
Scott R. Baker, R Farrokhnia, Steffen Meyer, Michaela Pagel and Constantine Yannelis
April 7, 2020
How Infectious-Disease Testing Can Improve Employee Performance
A new study on malaria prevention shows that employees who know their health status become more productive at work.
Oladele Akogun, Andrew Dillon, Jed Friedman, Ashesh Prasann and Pieter Serneels
April 1, 2020
The Unprecedented Stock-Market Reaction to COVID-19
A new analysis explains why this pandemic really is different.
Scott R. Baker, Nicholas Bloom, Steven J. Davis, Kyle Kost, Marco Sammon and Tasaneeya Viratyosin
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