Publications:
"English Language Requirement and Educational Inequality: Evidence from 16 Million College Applicants in China" (with Hongbin Li, Lingsheng Meng, and Kai Mu)
Journal of Development Economics, Forthcoming
"Does the Squeaky Wheel Get More Grease? The Direct and Indirect Effects of Citizen Participation on Environmental Governance in China" (with Mark Buntaine, Michael Greenstone, Guojun He, Mengdi Liu, and Bing Zhang)
American Economic Review, 2024, 114(3), pp.815-850.
"When Information Conflicts with Obligations: the Role of Motivated Cognition" (with Ao Wang and Xiaoyang Ye)
Economic Journal, 2023, 133(654), pp.2533-2552.
"Buddha's Grace Illuminates All: Temple Destruction, School Construction, and Modernization in 20th Century China" (with Boxiao Zhang)
Economica, 2023, 90 (360), pp.1335-1361.
"Subjective Performance Evaluation, Influence Activities, and Bureaucratic Work Behavior: Evidence from China" (with Alain de Janvry, Elisabeth Sadoulet, Guojun He, and Qiong Zhang)
American Economic Review, 2023, 113(3), pp.766-799.
"Watering Down Environmental Regulation in China" (with Guojun He and Bing Zhang)
Quarterly Journal of Economics, 2020, 135(4), pp.2135-2185.
"Do College Graduates Serving as Village Officials Help Rural China?" (with Guojun He)
American Economic Journal: Applied Economics, 2017, 9(4), pp.186-215.
Journal of Development Economics, Forthcoming
- Media Coverage: BFI, Tencent News (in Chinese)
"Does the Squeaky Wheel Get More Grease? The Direct and Indirect Effects of Citizen Participation on Environmental Governance in China" (with Mark Buntaine, Michael Greenstone, Guojun He, Mengdi Liu, and Bing Zhang)
American Economic Review, 2024, 114(3), pp.815-850.
- Media Coverage: NPR; The World; Bloomberg; BFI; BFI China (in Chinese); SCMP; The Hill; Yahoo News; VoxEU; VoxDev; VoxChina; China Dialogue; Not Another Politics Podcast
"When Information Conflicts with Obligations: the Role of Motivated Cognition" (with Ao Wang and Xiaoyang Ye)
Economic Journal, 2023, 133(654), pp.2533-2552.
- Media Coverage: BFI
"Buddha's Grace Illuminates All: Temple Destruction, School Construction, and Modernization in 20th Century China" (with Boxiao Zhang)
Economica, 2023, 90 (360), pp.1335-1361.
"Subjective Performance Evaluation, Influence Activities, and Bureaucratic Work Behavior: Evidence from China" (with Alain de Janvry, Elisabeth Sadoulet, Guojun He, and Qiong Zhang)
American Economic Review, 2023, 113(3), pp.766-799.
"Watering Down Environmental Regulation in China" (with Guojun He and Bing Zhang)
Quarterly Journal of Economics, 2020, 135(4), pp.2135-2185.
- Media Coverage: VoxDev; EPIC; EPIC China (in Chinese); NSFC (in Chinese)
"Do College Graduates Serving as Village Officials Help Rural China?" (with Guojun He)
American Economic Journal: Applied Economics, 2017, 9(4), pp.186-215.
- Media Coverage: AEA Research Highlight; Financial Times (in Chinese); CNPolitics (in Chinese)
Working Papers:
"Court Capture, Local Protectionism, and Economic Integration: Evidence from China" (with Ernest Liu, Yi Lu, and Wenwei Peng)
"Policy Experimentation in China: The Political Economy of Policy Learning" (with David Y. Yang)
Revise and Resubmit, Journal of Political Economy
"Campaigning for Extinction: Eradication of Sparrow and the Great Famine in China" (with Eyal Frank, Qinyun Wang, Xuebin Wang, and Yang You)
"Cognitive Distortions in Complex Decisions: Evidence from Centralized College Admission" (with Ao Wang and Xiaoyang Ye)
"The Environmental and Economic Consequences of Internalizing Border Spillovers" (with Zenan Wang)
Revise and Resubmit, American Economic Journal: Applied Economics
"Fiscal Competition and Coordination: Evidence from China"
"Courting a Blue Sky: Understanding the Constrained Judicialization of Environmental Governance in China" (with Zhuang Liu, and Wenwei Peng)
Invited Submission, Journal of Contemporary China (special issue on China's green transition)
"Policy Experimentation in China: The Political Economy of Policy Learning" (with David Y. Yang)
Revise and Resubmit, Journal of Political Economy
- Media Coverage: The Economist; CATO Research Brief; VoxDev; BFI; BFI China (in Chinese)
"Campaigning for Extinction: Eradication of Sparrow and the Great Famine in China" (with Eyal Frank, Qinyun Wang, Xuebin Wang, and Yang You)
"Cognitive Distortions in Complex Decisions: Evidence from Centralized College Admission" (with Ao Wang and Xiaoyang Ye)
"The Environmental and Economic Consequences of Internalizing Border Spillovers" (with Zenan Wang)
Revise and Resubmit, American Economic Journal: Applied Economics
"Fiscal Competition and Coordination: Evidence from China"
"Courting a Blue Sky: Understanding the Constrained Judicialization of Environmental Governance in China" (with Zhuang Liu, and Wenwei Peng)
Invited Submission, Journal of Contemporary China (special issue on China's green transition)
Selected Works in Progress:
"The Selection and Making of Civil Servants: Evidence from China's College Graduate Civil Services Program" (with Guojun He, David Y. Yang, and Qiong Zhang)
"Policy Learning and Policy Diffusion in China" (with Kaicheng Luo and David Y. Yang)
"The Law and Economics of Lawyers: Evidence from the Revolving Door in China's Judicial System" (with Zhuang Liu, Wenwei Peng, and Daniel Yi Xu)
"The Political Economic Determinants of Nuclear Power: Evidence from Chernobyl" (with Alexey Makarin and Nancy Qian)
"Judicial Mediation: Determinants and Consequences" (with Zhuang Liu and Boli Xu)
"Open Justice: Experimental Evidence from Courtroom Livestreaming in China" (with Zhuang Liu and Yingmao Tang)
"Long Run Effects of Higher Education on Financial Outcomes" (with Hongbin Li, Yi Lu, and Binzhen Wu)
"Policy Learning and Policy Diffusion in China" (with Kaicheng Luo and David Y. Yang)
"The Law and Economics of Lawyers: Evidence from the Revolving Door in China's Judicial System" (with Zhuang Liu, Wenwei Peng, and Daniel Yi Xu)
"The Political Economic Determinants of Nuclear Power: Evidence from Chernobyl" (with Alexey Makarin and Nancy Qian)
"Judicial Mediation: Determinants and Consequences" (with Zhuang Liu and Boli Xu)
"Open Justice: Experimental Evidence from Courtroom Livestreaming in China" (with Zhuang Liu and Yingmao Tang)
"Long Run Effects of Higher Education on Financial Outcomes" (with Hongbin Li, Yi Lu, and Binzhen Wu)
Other Writings:
"Capturing the Transformation Rent: Lessons from Mexico and China" with Alain de Janvry, Policy Brief Ferdi B112, July 2015.
"How Does the Auction of License Plates Affect the Trade of Auto in Shanghai?" Statistical Research (in Chinese), with Boxiao Zhang, V30(3): 78-85, 2013.
"Why Have Some Local Governments Closed More Rural Schools than Others?" with Yanqing Ding and Xiaoyang Ye, China Economics of Education Review (in Chinese), 2016, 1(4): 3-34.
"How Does the Auction of License Plates Affect the Trade of Auto in Shanghai?" Statistical Research (in Chinese), with Boxiao Zhang, V30(3): 78-85, 2013.
"Why Have Some Local Governments Closed More Rural Schools than Others?" with Yanqing Ding and Xiaoyang Ye, China Economics of Education Review (in Chinese), 2016, 1(4): 3-34.
- Media Coverage: Xinhua Digest (in Chinese).