AEA Research Highlights

Ep. 103: When managers try to keep their best workers from moving into other departments

Most firms rely on managers to spot talented workers and to encourage them to move into bigger roles within the company. But managers are judged on how their own teams pe

Ep. 102: The economics of sanctioning a petrostate

In response to Russia's 2022 invasion of Ukraine, the G7 imposed a price cap of $60 per barrel on all Russian oil carried by tankers owned, insured, or serviced by Wester

Ep. 101: Views on the dollar shortage controversy

In the fifteen years following the end of World War II, Western Europe's capital account surpluses were not sufficient to finance its trade deficit with the United States

Ep. 100: Environmental market design

Since the 1990s, developers in Florida who want to build on wetlands have been required to buy offset credits from "wetland mitigation banks," private restoration project

Ep. 99: The wrong side of the tracks

The place where a child grows up in America shapes their economic future to a significant degree. One long-suspected explanation is racial segregation, but proving whethe

Ep. 98: Delivering clean water

More than two billion people around the world do not have safe drinking water at home. Piped water infrastructure remains out of reach for much of the developing world, a

Ep. 97: A short history of Asian immigration

Asian Americans are the fastest-growing racial group in the United States and are on track to become the largest immigrant group by 2050. Yet, researchers have devoted mu

Ep. 96: W. E. B. Du Bois and the history of marginalism

W. E. B. Du Bois is remembered as a civil rights leader, sociologist, and author of The Souls of Black Folk. But before he became famous for his empirical studies of Blac

Ep. 95: Diversifying college applications

Guidance counselors generally advise college applicants to diversify their applications across schools they believe to be safeties, matches, and reaches. Yet, prevailing

Ep. 94: Targeted supply-side enforcement in the controlled substance market

Between 1997 and 2011, opioid dispensing in the United States more than tripled, fueling what would become the deadliest drug epidemic in American history. This surge in

Ep. 93: Technological spillovers

The launch of Sputnik by the Soviet Union in October 1957 led to a geopolitical crisis that reshaped American science policy. Within months, Congress established NASA, an

Ep. 92: Housing supply skepticism

Most Americans agree that housing costs are too high, often blaming developers and landlords.  Many feel that the problem can be solved with price controls, development r

Ep. 91: Reviewing residential segregation

Despite decades of civil rights legislation, many Black and White Americans, as well as other minorities, continue to live in racially homogeneous neighborhoods, with sig

Ep. 90: Understanding the US net foreign asset position

For decades, the United States enjoyed what some called an exorbitant privilege—the ability to spend more than it earned without accumulating much debt to the rest of the

Ep. 89: Measuring US income inequality

US household income has grown significantly, but much of that growth seems to be at the very top of the distribution. Just how much inequality has increased and why it is

Ep. 88: Understanding international approaches to drug pricing

Drug prices have become a hot-button issue in the United States, with politicians across the spectrum agreeing that American consumers pay too much for prescription medic

Ep. 87: The cultural roots of rebellion

Civil conflict has plagued much of Africa, with ethnically diverse countries experiencing particularly high rates of violence. Yet within these nations, patterns vary, le

Ep. 86: Reexamining air quality regulations

The Clean Air Act has been an essential tool for reducing air pollution in the United States. But standard estimation methods may overstate its impact, according to a pap

Ep. 85: America's public safety net

The patchwork nature of America's public safety net has evolved over centuries, shaped by political winds and changing views on poverty. Understanding this complicated hi

Ep. 84: Media salience and polarization