Cornell University Department of Economics

• Research Interests
• Health and Disability
• Income Inequality
• Other Research

Research Interests

My main areas of interest are in economic inequality, health economics and labor economics. Most of my recent research has focussed on trends in US income inequality, the well being of individuals with disabilities, and the relationship between income and health outcomes.

My recent research on inequality evaluates the extent to which observed changes in household income inequality are due to changes at the top of the income distribution and, by extension, how Census procedures to protect the confidentiality of high earners impact our ability to capture the actual trends in inequality. In my job market paper, I explore the extent to which demographic trends have contributed to rising household income inequality in the United State and find that the factors contributing to rising household income inequality have shifted over time. Declines in marriage rates and increases in male earnings inequality are the primary factors contributing to rising income inequality - but in recent years the influence of changes in male earnings have grown while the importance of demographic influences such as changes in marriage patterns and the changing correlation between spousal earnings have declined. A working paper version of my job market paper is available here.

My recent health research has overlapped my research on income inequality. I am currently studying how proposed changes in the taxation of health benefits would impact inequality in the United States. Additionally, I am interested in the relationships between an individuals' health and their income. In earlier research, I explored how individuals with disabilities fared in the United States over the past 30 years. I found that the way the Census Bureau censors incomes in the March CPS has previously led to an overstatement of the relative economic well-being of individuals with disabilities. I am continuing to research the relationship between health status and income with current work on the income-health gradient that attempts to determine the extent to which there is a causal relationship from higher income to better health.