Research Work

The impact of land redistribution on structural transformation is ambiguous. While large landowners may hinder industrialization by restricting access to education, larger farm scale can facilitate mechanization and productivity growth. This study uses novel fine-grained data to examine the long-term effects of the 1950 Italian land reform, which redistributed land from large to small landowners. Employing two difference-in-differences strategies, we find that redistribution slowed industrialization, with agglomeration forces emerging as a key mechanism, whereas education played a limited role. The reform’s effects on agricultural specialization persisted for at least 50 years, and expropriated areas experienced significantly lower income growth between 1970 and 2000.

This study examines the influence of U.S. movies, often touted as a medium of soft power, on Italian elections during the Cold War. Combining fixed effects models and instrumental variables with a newly built panel dataset, we find that increased exposure to American movies led to electoral gains for the main U.S.-endorsed party, and corresponding losses for the Italian communist party, supported by the Soviet Union. Contemporary surveys capture more favorable opinions toward the U.S., particularly regarding Italy’s preferred geopolitical alignment. The vote shares of other parties are not affected, while relative changes in turnout are small.

We study the effects on labor market outcomes of a licensing process that led to the closure of 1/3 of Peruvian colleges (2016-2021). Using a rich panel dataset of recent college graduates and a difference-in-differences model, we find an increase in wages for graduates from colleges that obtained a license and no significant effects for graduates from universities whose license was denied.

We study the effects on labor market outcomes of a licensing process that led to the closure of 1/3 of Peruvian colleges (2016-2021). Using a rich panel dataset of recent college graduates and a difference-in-differences model, we find an increase in wages for graduates from colleges that obtained a license and no significant effects for graduates from universities whose license was denied.

Enrollment gaps are pervasive in developing countries, despite public investment and legislation aimed at democratizing access to college. We study the effects of opening new college campuses in underserved areas, a commonly proposed policy to reduce such gaps. Using Peruvian census data to estimate a difference in differences model, we find that enrollment increased by about 1p.p. or 10% in the short term. However, estimated effects for minority students are only half the size of others, widening preexisting gaps. To understand the drivers of this result, we assemble a new administrative dataset on college applications and build a model of education demand with heterogeneity in preferences and probability of admission. The results show that the interaction of initial advantage and meritocratic criteria increases educational inequality: even though proximity is highly valued by less-advantaged students, meritocratic admission criteria hinder poor and minority students, who disproportionately attend lower-quality high schools. Our counterfactuals show that addressing high school quality disparities is more likely to reduce college enrollment inequality than further supply expansions.