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on Minorities Research (Ethnic, LGBTQ+, Disabilities) |
| By: | Kalee E. Burns; Julie L. Hotchkiss |
| Abstract: | This paper investigates the role that homophily might play in explaining racial/ethnic disparities in the labor market. We find that Black and Hispanic workers are less responsive than White workers to changes in job opportunities, but responsiveness increases when those opportunities present themselves in locations with a higher share own-race population. The analysis makes use of restricted American Community Survey data, accessible through the Federal Statistical Research Data Centers, allowing us to include commuting zones that may otherwise not be identified because of suppressed location information in the public data |
| Keywords: | regional labor markets; regional migration; geographic mobility; racial disparities; migration policy; migration costs; social costs; homophily; place-based; people-based; geographic mismatch |
| JEL: | R22 J61 J15 J18 |
| Date: | 2026–03 |
| URL: | https://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:cen:wpaper:26-22 |
| By: | Maude Laberge; Bile Yacouba Djedou; Anaïs Lacasse; Catherine Hudon; Thomas G. Poder |
| Abstract: | The idea of healthcare spending being concentrated among a minority of users is well documented. Understanding this particularly heavy use of healthcare services is essential for helping to better guide public policy. Using longitudinal medical-administrative data from the TorSaDE cohort, the authors of this study offer an original contribution with a Quebec context. They analyze high-use patients’ activities and identify the main factors associated with their care pathways. The study highlights the diversity and complexity of these individuals’ needs. The findings call for a rethinking of current strategies and in particular, a shift toward personalized approaches that anticipate needs, better support individuals and improve the system’s efficiency. This study serves as a highly strategic tool for healthcare planning in Quebec. The early identification of high-risk trajectory profiles enables upstream action through targeted interventions before overuse becomes entrenched. → Read the full report La concentration des dépenses de santé au sein d’une minorité d’usagers est un phénomène bien documenté. Comprendre les trajectoires de soins de ces grands utilisateurs des services de santé est essentiel pour mieux orienter les politiques publiques. En exploitant les données médico-administratives longitudinales de la cohorte TorSaDE, les auteurs de cette étude apportent une contribution originale dans le contexte québécois. Ils analysent les profils d’utilisation des grands utilisateurs et identifient les principaux facteurs associés à leurs trajectoires de soins. L’étude met en évidence la diversité des parcours et la complexité des besoins de ces personnes. Les constats appellent à repenser les stratégies actuelles et à privilégier des approches personnalisées permettant d’anticiper les besoins, de mieux accompagner les personnes et d’améliorer l’efficience du système. Cette étude est un outil hautement stratégique pour la planification des soins au Québec. L’identification précoce des profils de trajectoires à risque permet d’agir en amont, en proposant des interventions ciblées avant que la surutilisation ne s’installe. → Lire le rapport complet |
| Date: | 2026–04–22 |
| URL: | https://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:cir:circah:2026pj-07 |
| By: | Darrell Norman Burrell (Marymount University, USA); Allison J. Huff (The University of Arizona, USA); Delores Springs (Capitol Technology University, USA); Quatavia McLester (Columbus State University, USA); Daphnee Labidou-West (Marymount University, USA); Won Song (Capitol Technology University, USA) |
| Abstract: | This commentary examines the structural roots and consequences of racial bias in healthcare technology and the persistent underrepresentation of racial and ethnic minorities in clinical research. While medical technologies are often framed as objective and scientifically neutral, this paper argues that they are embedded within broader social, historical, and institutional contexts that shape their development and application. Empirical evidence demonstrates that widely used diagnostic tools, such as pulse oximeters and infrared thermometers, can produce systematically biased readings across racial groups, leading to clinically significant disparities in diagnosis and treatment. Concurrently, clinical trials continue to disproportionately enroll White participants, limiting the generalizability and validity of medical knowledge for diverse populations. The analysis integrates perspectives from social psychology and systems thinking to illustrate how mistrust, implicit bias, historical injustice, and institutional design collectively reinforce inequitable outcomes. These issues are not isolated technical flaws but interconnected failures spanning research design, regulatory oversight, industry incentives, and community engagement. As a result, healthcare systems risk institutionalizing error while perpetuating unequal risk distribution. The paper argues that meaningful reform requires a comprehensive systems-based approach, including regulatory accountability, inclusive research practices, culturally competent methodologies, and sustained community partnerships. Addressing these challenges is essential not only for improving scientific rigor but also for restoring public trust and advancing health equity. Ultimately, the paper positions equity as a foundational requirement for both ethical legitimacy and effective healthcare delivery in diverse societies. |
| Keywords: | Healthcare Equity, Racial Bias, Healthcare Technology, Biotechnology, Clinical Trials, Health Disparities, Health Administration, Medical Device Development, Healthcare Research |
| Date: | 2026–03 |
| URL: | https://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:smo:raiswp:0628 |
| By: | Loux, Travis (Saint Louis University College for Public Health and Social Justice); Wankum, Ethan |
| Abstract: | Studying of the effect of racial differences on health outcomes is a difficult task for reasons including varying definitions of race - many of which may not adhere to current best practices - its philosophical acceptance as a well-defined exposure, and appropriate utilization of factors with important roles in the relationship between race and outcome. Inattentive approaches to any of these issues can lead to biased, irrelevant, or unreplicable study findings. We highlight these concerns paying special focus to the issue of covariates in analyses of racial causal effects. We show that mis-identifying many common covariates as confounding variables can bias estimates of racial causal effects. Rather than defaulting to using covariates as confounding variables, researchers should carefully consider the role each variable plays in the relationship between race and outcome and how accounting for each will affect effect estimates and their interpretability. |
| Date: | 2026–04–14 |
| URL: | https://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:osf:socarx:835ga_v1 |
| By: | Coffey, Stephanie (Saint Anselm College); Goodman, Joshua (Boston University); Schwartz, Amy (University of Delaware); Stiefel, Leanna (New York University); Winters, Marcus (Boston University); Yoon, Yunee (Boston University) |
| Abstract: | Special education serves more than one in seven U.S. students yet its causal impact remains understudied. Using longitudinal data from Massachusetts, Indiana, and Connecticut, we estimate the effect of individualized supports with an event-study design that tracks achievement around initial classification. Students’ scores decline prior to placement and rise sharply afterward, yielding a consistent V-shaped pattern. Within three years, achievement is 0.2–0.4σ higher than counterfactual trends imply. Gains are similar across disability categories and subgroups, are not driven by testing accommodations, and remain under conservative assumptions. Individualized supports substantially increase learning productivity. |
| Keywords: | special education, human capital, treatment effects, education policy |
| JEL: | I21 I28 H52 J24 |
| Date: | 2026–04 |
| URL: | https://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:iza:izadps:dp18531 |
| By: | Borja Larrain; Alessandro Previtero; Felipe Severino |
| Abstract: | We examine how annuities affect longevity using administrative payout data on approximately 600, 000 Chilean retirees from 2004 to 2022. To address selection into annuitization, we exploit the fact that annuity sales vary with recent market returns, a pattern consistent with extrapolative beliefs. We find that the decision to annuitize—instrumented by recent market returns—substantially reduces mortality at five- and ten-year horizons. Further analyses indicate that annuities reduce mortality by shielding retirees from income volatility and investment-related stress. Complementary survey evidence suggests that annuitants invest more in health and report lower disability rates. |
| JEL: | D14 G22 G41 G51 G52 J26 |
| Date: | 2026–04 |
| URL: | https://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:nbr:nberwo:35082 |
| By: | DragoÈ™ Lucian Radulescu (Petroleum Gas University of Ploiesti, Romania) |
| Abstract: | The concept of discrimination in employment relationships is based on the application of unequal treatment among employees of the same employer in situations where they are in comparable circumstances, or on the application of identical treatment to individuals who are in different situations. The regulation of discriminatory conduct is founded on the recognition of certain protected criteria. These criteria were first established in European secondary law through a series of EU directives, which were subsequently transposed into the national legislation of the Member States. Non-discrimination rules aim not only to limit unjustified differences in treatment, but also to protect specific characteristics such as race, nationality, religious belief, and other comparable grounds. In such cases, the employee may invoke a presumption of discrimination. Even conduct that appears neutral may constitute discrimination if it produces the effect of restricting or preventing the exercise of legally recognized rights. In this context, the prohibition of discrimination is grounded in the protection of fundamental rights and entails banning any distinctions, exclusions, restrictions, or preferences applied by employers to employees who are in comparable situations. This article examines the concept of discrimination in employment relationships, the protected criteria, as well as the classification and development of European and national regulations concerning discrimination. |
| Keywords: | Discrimination, Protected Grounds, European Law, National Law, Case Law |
| Date: | 2026–03 |
| URL: | https://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:smo:raiswp:0647 |
| By: | Takashi Oshio; Satoshi Shimizutani |
| Abstract: | This study examined how health inequalities with respect to income have changed among older adults in Japan from 2001 to 2022. The past two decades have witnessed a series of public pension reforms and increased labor force participation among older individuals. The pro-rich concentration of good health has become less clear for self-rated health and activities of daily living among older men. However, income-related inequality in stress/anxiety increased over time in men, and no clear trend was observed for health deficiencies or conditions. Compared to men, women showed more mixed results, with widening inequalities in health deficiencies and conditions. |
| JEL: | H55 I14 J14 |
| Date: | 2026–04 |
| URL: | https://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:nbr:nberwo:35094 |
| By: | Irlenbusch, Bernd (University of Cologne); Rau, Holger (University of Duisburg-Essen and University of Göttingen); Rilke, Rainer (Economics Group, WHU – Otto Beisheim School of Management) |
| Abstract: | We study how human versus LLM-based evaluation and gender transparency shape entry into competitive jobs. In a preregistered online experiment, participants first complete a Niederle and Vesterlund (2007) tournament task to measure competitive preferences, then prepare text-based job applications and decide whether to apply under each of four evaluation regimes—human only, LLM only, and two hybrid human-in-the-loop configurations—while gender disclosure is randomized between subjects. LLM involvement reduces application rates, with stronger effects for women than men, including under hybrid designs. Effects are driven by non-competitive candidates; non-competitive women, the group most exposed to AI-induced deterrence, receive the strongest objective evaluations under pure AI assessment across all subgroups, yet are systematically underconfident and apply least often. Competitive men persistently apply and exhibit overconfidence-driven adverse selection, whereas competitive women show resilience to AI-induced deterrence while remaining well-calibrated under AI evaluation and exhibiting positive self-selection across regimes. We find no effects of gender transparency. |
| Keywords: | AI hiring, LLMs, algorithm aversion, gender differences |
| JEL: | C92 J71 J24 O33 |
| Date: | 2026–04 |
| URL: | https://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:iza:izadps:dp18517 |
| By: | Garcia, Armando |
| Abstract: | This article argues that Iceland's wartime 'Situation' (Ástandið), the expansive moral and administrative apparatus erected to govern relationships between Icelandic women and Allied soldiers during and after the Second World War, was a foundational project of pacification through which Iceland consolidated itself as a white security state. Approaching security as social war (Neocleous, 2025) alongside Veblen's analysis of pecuniary culture and trained incapacity (Veblen, 2008), the article demonstrates how eugenic anxieties about a fragile Icelandic 'racial stock' (kynstofn) underpinned gendered surveillance, emergency legislation, forced medical examination, and carceral confinement targeting working-class young women. A state-negotiated colour bar, rooted in Prime Minister Jónasson's 1941 demand for 'white troops only' and institutionalised in secret provisions of the 1951 US–Iceland Defence Agreement, inserted Iceland into a militarised global apartheid (Besteman, 2019; 2020). Children born of these relationships, ástandsbörn, were marked as racially liminal through naming practices and community ostracism, extending pacification across generations as a form of necropolitical governance over kinship and futurity (Mbembe, 2003). Connecting these histories to contemporary moral panics over 'migrant predators', DNA collection proposals targeting non-EEA residents, and violent protest policing, the article argues that governing rationalities forged during Ástandið persist in a spectral pacification of racialised migrants and dissenting citizens. Mobilising critical conversations on culture, security, and white supremacy, the article positions Iceland as a formative site for critical race inquiry. |
| Date: | 2026–04–11 |
| URL: | https://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:osf:socarx:2k4ge_v2 |