Development Economics
Health Economics
Public Policy
Behavioral/Experimental Economics
Taylor, E., Zars, J., Tiwari, M., Hansen, J., Schmitt, C., Gable, S., “Individual and Community Reentry Characteristics Associated with Outcomes over Five Years for Individuals on Probation and Parole” (R&R @ Journal of Offender Rehabilitation)
The purpose of this longitudinal analysis was to examine the relationship between participation in Missouri’s Community Reentry Initiative (CRI) and re-offense at two time points for individuals on probation and parole. The results of this study found that 13.7% of CRI participants re-offended during their first year of supervision (8.4% of those on probation and 18.6% of those on parole) and 48.2% re-offended at some point during the four years after the CRI (43.9% of those on probation and 52.2% of those on parole). Findings suggest that different types and amounts of reentry services are differentially associated with the likelihood of re-offense for those under community supervision. And, that these associations differ with time and also for individuals on probation versus parole.
Housing Wealth Shocks and Health (w/ Padmaja Ayyagari & David Frisvold)
In this study, we examine the impact of housing wealth on health outcomes using data from the Panel Study of Income Dynamics 1981-2017. We use market-level changes in housing prices as an exogenous variation to measure the causal impact of housing wealth on individuals’ physical and mental health. Our results show that a $100,000 increase in housing price over two years increases the probability of being healthy by 1.9 percentage points and decreases the probability of being unhealthy by 0.63 percentage points. However, we do not find any significant impact of housing wealth shock on life satisfaction and psychological health. Furthermore, our results suggest that the positive and negative housing wealth shocks have asymmetrical effects on an individual’s health. Heterogenous analysis indicates that the impact of housing wealth shocks is more pronounced among younger homeowners but does not differ by marital status.
Racial Disparities in Student Evaluation of Teaching Effectiveness (w/ J. Jobu Babin & Andrew Hussey)
This paper examine racial disparities in student evaluation of teaching effectiveness (SETEs) using a 10-year panel of class-level observations from a large US public university. Following Babin et al. 2023, our identification strategy resembles a difference-in-differences where face-to-face (or hybrid) classes act as a ’treatment”, compared to an online class “control”. Our result shows that when the faculty is Hispanic in face-to-face courses, the average SETE is 2.3% lower than Hispanic faculty in an online class. In the non-stem field, when the faculty is Asian in face to face courses, the average SETE is 1.5% lower than Asian faculty in an online class.
Courage and Connection: Loneliness and Prosociality (w/J. Jobu Babin, Haritima Chauhan, & Anna Klis)
In this study, we examine the relationship between loneliness and
prosociality (four classic one-shot social dilemmas) among military
service veterans and non-veterans. Military service veterans are
susceptible to heightened levels of loneliness and social isolation, but
concurrently, these individuals are trained to collaborate and have a
team-oriented mindset. Our results show that combat veterans were
statistically more lonely on average than non-combat veterans or
non-vets. We find that one standard deviation increase in loneliness
decreases prosociality in non-veterans but we do not find any
significant relationship between loneliness and prosociality among
veterans. Differentials between actions and the perceived norms in each
game revealed stronger norm adherence in veterans. Across three of the
four social dilemmas, we found that veterans were more prosocial on
average than non-veterans (mostly driven by combat veterans). Using
response time as a proxy for cognitive load, we also find that veterans
made pro-social decisions far faster than non-veterans.
“Sibling Kinship and Prosociality” (w/ J. Jobu Babin & Haritima Chauhan).
This paper examines differences in prosocial behavior across subjects with varying sibling kin- ship. Only children were 24% less likely to cooperate in one-shot stag hunts and transfer less in public goods and dictator games compared to those growing up with at least one sibling. The injunctive and perceived social norms in the games differ across kinship groups. We provide mixed evidence that revealing a counterpart’s sibling background may impact cooperation and altruism. Text anal- ysis reveals that when subjects define kinship, those with siblings include a more detailed account of helping and being strong.
Food insecurity and educational outcomes (w/ Thomas Sadler & Emily Shupe)
Mayfield, W., Tiwari, M., Jamtgaard, K., DeSpain, R., Dicke, R.,“The Effects of Missouri Parents as Teachers Participation on Child Outcomes” , Institute of Public Policy, University of Missouri, Columbia, March 2022
Buckler, Z.,Tiwari, M., Haxton, C., “Missouri Department of Corrections Community Reentry Funding Initiative”, Institute of Public Policy, University of Missouri, Columbia, January 2022