Origins, evolution, and economic cost of gender norms. Gender norms are slow to change, and key drivers of economic development. This proposal leverages natural experiments to test their causal implications on two major channels of economic growth: the trust shared by individuals and the productivity of firms. It will use cutting-edge empirical techniques to generate novel measures of diversity and inclusion for Australian firms, and will conduct original fieldwork, matching experimental measure ....Origins, evolution, and economic cost of gender norms. Gender norms are slow to change, and key drivers of economic development. This proposal leverages natural experiments to test their causal implications on two major channels of economic growth: the trust shared by individuals and the productivity of firms. It will use cutting-edge empirical techniques to generate novel measures of diversity and inclusion for Australian firms, and will conduct original fieldwork, matching experimental measures of trust and cooperation with variation in traditional male versus female roles. This research aims at improving fundamental knowledge about how cultural norms shape economic outcomes and anticipates delivering practical policy recommendations for more efficient and inclusive economic growth. Read moreRead less
How the allocation of children's time affects the stimulation of cognitive and non-cognitive development. In a 2008 Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) report, more than seven percent of Australian children have fewer than 11 books in their family home, Australia ranks in the bottom third of OECD nations for infant mortality and 21st out of 27 for children eating meals with their parents. The Rudd Government is committed to a child-centred approach to family policy. In ....How the allocation of children's time affects the stimulation of cognitive and non-cognitive development. In a 2008 Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) report, more than seven percent of Australian children have fewer than 11 books in their family home, Australia ranks in the bottom third of OECD nations for infant mortality and 21st out of 27 for children eating meals with their parents. The Rudd Government is committed to a child-centred approach to family policy. In this study we investigate the allocation of Australian children's time and its effect on their cognitive and non-cognitive development. Cognitive and non-cognitive development is crucial to the future wellbeing of a child and therefore to the wellbeing of the nation.Read moreRead less
Discovery Early Career Researcher Award - Grant ID: DE190100887
Funder
Australian Research Council
Funding Amount
$375,000.00
Summary
Economic analysis of time constraints on decision-making in health. This project aims to determine whether and how time constraints affect decision-making. Time constraints can impair the quality of decisions in health, resulting in serious medical and financial consequences. This project will employ experimental economic methods to examine how misaligned preferences and incentives influence decision-making under time constraints. The project will offer scientific evidence and accurate measureme ....Economic analysis of time constraints on decision-making in health. This project aims to determine whether and how time constraints affect decision-making. Time constraints can impair the quality of decisions in health, resulting in serious medical and financial consequences. This project will employ experimental economic methods to examine how misaligned preferences and incentives influence decision-making under time constraints. The project will offer scientific evidence and accurate measurements, provide insights into interventions to align the preferences of doctors and patients, and to lower the overtreatment of patients in the health-care market. The project expects to benefit society and contribute to a more efficient healthcare system.Read moreRead less
Discovery Early Career Researcher Award - Grant ID: DE150101032
Funder
Australian Research Council
Funding Amount
$378,000.00
Summary
Economic analysis of peer effects in adolescence and adulthood. Although healthier, stronger and better at reasoning than young children, adolescents' morbidity and mortality rates are double those of young children. Unintentional injury, mostly avoidable and attributed to wrong decisions, is the biggest cause of death and hospitalisation among adolescents in Australia. Peer presence is likely to be a major cause of adolescents' inferior decision-making. This project aims to use experimental eco ....Economic analysis of peer effects in adolescence and adulthood. Although healthier, stronger and better at reasoning than young children, adolescents' morbidity and mortality rates are double those of young children. Unintentional injury, mostly avoidable and attributed to wrong decisions, is the biggest cause of death and hospitalisation among adolescents in Australia. Peer presence is likely to be a major cause of adolescents' inferior decision-making. This project aims to use experimental economics methods to study how peer presence affects the parameters of the economic decision model, specifically risk tolerance, discounting, and propensity to make errors. The project aims to advance the understanding of decision-making across the lifespan, inform theoretical modelling and advise policy-makers how to reduce the risks to adolescents.Read moreRead less
Strategic Behaviour in Games. John von Neumann’s minimax solution (1928) and its generalisation to mixed-strategy Nash (1950) equilibrium are the cornerstones of modern game theory, the mathematical framework for the study of decision making when the actions of different decision makers interact. This project studies human behaviour in situations where decision makers have an incentive to be unpredictable. The proposed research will shed light on the sources of the failure of the theory in the l ....Strategic Behaviour in Games. John von Neumann’s minimax solution (1928) and its generalisation to mixed-strategy Nash (1950) equilibrium are the cornerstones of modern game theory, the mathematical framework for the study of decision making when the actions of different decision makers interact. This project studies human behaviour in situations where decision makers have an incentive to be unpredictable. The proposed research will shed light on the sources of the failure of the theory in the lab, and assesses the practical significance of the statistical tests used to evaluate laboratory data on mixed-strategy play.Read moreRead less
Neuroeconomic foundations of probability and value perception. This project aims to investigate well-known behavioural “biases” in probability and value perception through the lens of neurobiology. This project will generate new knowledge on how the value of rewards, and the likelihood of receiving them, are incorporated in the decision-making process. Using an interdisciplinary approach, this project will be of interest to researchers from several domains of social science, which focus on how a ....Neuroeconomic foundations of probability and value perception. This project aims to investigate well-known behavioural “biases” in probability and value perception through the lens of neurobiology. This project will generate new knowledge on how the value of rewards, and the likelihood of receiving them, are incorporated in the decision-making process. Using an interdisciplinary approach, this project will be of interest to researchers from several domains of social science, which focus on how and why people make their decisions and how we could improve people’s wellbeing by improving their choices. The findings will provide insights into effective, behaviour-related policy design that aims to improve peoples’ well-being.Read moreRead less
A Review of Work for the Dole as a Labour Market Program. The project will review the Work for the Dole program in terms of its first formal objective (to install work habits in young people)and in the wider context of giving young unemployed people the skills and confidence that will increase their chances of finding employment. The principal research tools used will be sample surveys and in-depth interviews. An independent substantial review will give a firm basis for discussions of the progr ....A Review of Work for the Dole as a Labour Market Program. The project will review the Work for the Dole program in terms of its first formal objective (to install work habits in young people)and in the wider context of giving young unemployed people the skills and confidence that will increase their chances of finding employment. The principal research tools used will be sample surveys and in-depth interviews. An independent substantial review will give a firm basis for discussions of the program, including how it can be improved and whether or not, given the political imperatives to retain it,it is desirable to increase expenditure on it.Read moreRead less
The rate of time preference in choice experiments: A systematic re-analysis. This project intends to re-analyse data from over 20 years of past research to understand when and why people sometimes make short-sighted choices. Time preference is a core concept in both theoretical and applied economics and a key input in public policy, yet empirical understanding of it is poor. Almost all important decisions of households, businesses and government involve benefits and costs that unfold over time. ....The rate of time preference in choice experiments: A systematic re-analysis. This project intends to re-analyse data from over 20 years of past research to understand when and why people sometimes make short-sighted choices. Time preference is a core concept in both theoretical and applied economics and a key input in public policy, yet empirical understanding of it is poor. Almost all important decisions of households, businesses and government involve benefits and costs that unfold over time. Many economists have used decision-making experiments to study how people value the future and make trade-offs over time, but these have not reached any clear consensus. This project plans to systematically re-analyse primary data using state-of-the-art estimation techniques to generate new estimates of the discount rate for each study. These will then be analysed in a meta-regression analysis to identify the factors that cause discount rates to vary between studies.Read moreRead less
Discovery Early Career Researcher Award - Grant ID: DE120101642
Funder
Australian Research Council
Funding Amount
$375,000.00
Summary
Army service, employment incentives and veterans' life outcomes: a natural experiment. This project will analyse the complex long-run effects of Australia's conscription ballots on the lives of conscripts and their families. Treating the ballots as 'natural experiments', it will consider direct effects of army service, including service in Vietnam and the effects of incentives created by veterans' compensation on a range of outcomes.
Using behavioural economic insights to overcome student procrastination. This project aims to study the relations between present-biased time preference, procrastination, and achievement at school, using economic experiments. Investment in human capital generates economic benefits for students, families, employers, and society, but its benefits are realised far into the future. Because of these immediate costs and delayed benefits, behavioural economic theory predicts that students will procrast ....Using behavioural economic insights to overcome student procrastination. This project aims to study the relations between present-biased time preference, procrastination, and achievement at school, using economic experiments. Investment in human capital generates economic benefits for students, families, employers, and society, but its benefits are realised far into the future. Because of these immediate costs and delayed benefits, behavioural economic theory predicts that students will procrastinate. This project will identify the characteristics of students at greatest risk of procrastination, evaluate practical strategies to overcome it, and examine whether it is associated with poorer outcomes. This should help schools and policy makers reduce educational inequalities, and yield long-term benefits over students’ lives.Read moreRead less