Research

The Effects of Clinical Depression on the Labor Market Outcomes of Young Adults
with Dr. William M. Rodgers III, Professor & Senior Economist, Heldrich Center, Rutgers University
A series of papers exploring the relationship between clinical depression and a variety of labor market outcomes, including unemployment, employment-population ratio and labor force participation. Drafts of papers from this series have been presented at several regional and national conferences (APPAM, SEA, VAE)

Consumer Sentiment and Price Expectations in Virginia
with the Institute for Policy and Opinion Research, Roanoke College
Twice a year, using a survey similar to that of the University of Michigan, ~600 VA households are interviewed about their opinion of the economy (both present and future).  Three indexes are calculated, along with an estimate for one-year and five-year price expectations.  The results are released every February, May, August, and November.

Mental Health and Financial Crisis: Gender-Differentiated Effects in Indonesia
with Dr. Yana van der Meulen Rodgers, Professor of Economics, Rutgers University 
Most of the exiting work concerning mental health and the macroeconomy focus on the United States rather than on developing or transition economies where the social repercussions of recession and economic crises can be just as, if not more, severe. This imbalance strengthens the rationale for using Indonesia as a case study for examining how financial crisis and the resulting pressures on job market security and compensation have affected indicators of mental health. Additionally, most studies have not focused on the disparate effects of economic crisis and mental health across gender. Women have a greater incidence of some mental health disorders, including depression (Piccinelli & Homen, 1997). Depression is more persistent amongst women (Bracke, 2000) and they are more likely to relapse than men (Kuehner, 1999). Coupled with the potentially greater impact of the financial crisis on female labor market outcomes, there is a strong rationale for analyzing women separately.

Applications of McElroy's Mentor Demonstration Model
I oversee an average of six Honors in the Major or Independent Study projects a year.  Finding an efficient but effective method for helping these students produce quality research is a challenge.  For the last two years I have adopted a variation of McElroy's Mentor Demonstration Model in which I work on projects weekly with the students so that they can see how each step of the research process is conducted.  We incorporate peer-review from which all members of the group, including me, receive valuable feedback.  Recently I coauthored a paper with three of the students (Sara Caudle, Tyler Rinko and Justin Tuma) detailing the process.  An earlier draft of that work has been on the SSRN Top 10 list for several months. http://ssrn.com/abstract=1964806 and the final draft is forthcoming in the spring 2014 issue of the Journal of Economic Education.