Research
Does Capital Spending on Schools Improve Education?
Yale SOM’s Barbara Biasi and her co-authors found that some projects improve test scores and others boost local property values—but they aren’t the same ones.
A Better Algorithm Can Bring Volunteers to More Organizations
Yale SOM’s Vahideh Manshadi and her collaborators found that an online platform was steering volunteers toward a small group of opportunities. By building equity into the algorithm, they were able to help more organizations find the volunteers they need.
In the Emergency Department, Patients from Marginalized Groups Are More Likely to be Bypassed in the Queue
In a busy hospital emergency department, White people who speak English and have private insurance are more likely to jump the line and get seen first, according to new research from Professors Lesley Meng and Edieal Pinker and Dr. Rohit Sangal ’21 of Yale New Haven Hospital.
Lower-Income Employees Are More Likely to Remain at 401(k) Defaults, Even If It Costs Them Money
Automatically enrolling employees in retirement plans is a powerful tool for increasing savings. But Yale SOM’s James Choi and his coauthors find that once enrolled, people with lower incomes are more likely to remain at default contribution rates, even if they aren’t optimal.
Did ‘Lockdown Fatigue’ Diminish the Effectiveness of COVID-19 Restrictions?
COVID-19 restrictions on group gatherings and businesses stretched on for months. Did they continue to save lives? In a new study, Yale SOM’s Matthew Spiegel examines how the effectiveness of restrictions evolved over time.
Ratings Systems Amplify Racial Bias on Gig-Economy Platforms
A new Yale SOM study found that the five-star ratings on platforms like Uber and TaskRabbit can spread the effects of racial discrimination by displaying ratings from biased users to those who otherwise would not discriminate.
Did Student Loan Forbearance Push Distressed Borrowers Further into Debt?
In a new study, Yale SOM’s Heather Tookes and her co-authors find that after loan forebearance went into effect in March 2020, distressed borrowers’ credit scores jumped. That allowed them to take on more credit card and auto debt—and, eventually, led to higher rates of delinquencies.
As Incomes Rise, Variability in Happiness Shrinks
New research from Yale SOM’s Gal Zauberman and former postdoc Bouke Klein Teeselink finds there’s both lower average happiness and greater happiness inequality among those with lower incomes.
Can You Make a Donation Today—and Tell All Your Friends?
Sharing information about our charitable donations can multiply their impact. Prof. Deborah Small tested whether reframing why a donor should disclose a gift can help encourage them to spread the good news.
The Dark Side of an Idealized Picture of Nursing
A new ethnographic study from Yale SOM’s Julia DiBenigno illustrates how a focus by workers on a fantasy version of their job can get in the way of organizational goals.
