We propose a new rank-based test for the number of common primitive shocks, q, in large panel data. After estimating a VAR(1) model on r static factors extracted by principal component analysis, we estimate the number of common primitive shocks by testing the rank of the VAR residuals'...

Team performance depends not only on the individual abilities of its members and cooperation between them but also on psychological factors such as confidence, rivalry, and perceived pressure. In a regular work environment, it is challenging to isolate the contribution of psychological factors....

We conduct a field experiment with job seekers to investigate how feedback influences job search and labor market outcomes. Job seekers who receive feedback on their ability compared to other job seekers update their beliefs and increase their search effort. Specifically, initially...

Around 50 years ago, the Netherlands decriminalized cannabis for recreational use. This paper uses retrospective data on the ages at which individuals began and ceased cannabis use to reconstruct its prevalence in Amsterdam during the period surrounding the policy change. This approach enables a...

We develop a score-driven time-varying parameter model where no particular parametric error distribution needs to be specified. The proposed method relies on a versatile spline-based density, which produces a score function that follows a natural cubic spline. This flexible approach nests the...

This paper provides new insights on the importance of family background by linking 1.7 million Dutch children's incomes to an exceptionally rich set of family characteristics - including income, wealth, education, occupation, crime, and health. Using a machine learning approach, I show that...

Climate change and its two-way relation with economic activity is stochastic and so is therefore the optimal tax internalizing the climate externality. But with capital irreversibility a stochastic time path for carbon prices slows down the reallocation from brown to green sectors because...

We present findings from an at-scale randomized trial of a government program provid- ing public employment services in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, with up-to-date vacancy infor- mation. Before the program, women with relatively less education searched more narrowly with worse labor market outcomes...

We propose a methodology to construct tests for the null hypothesis that the pricing errors of a panel of asset returns are jointly equal to zero in a linear factor asset pric- ing model - that is, the null of "zero alpha". We consider, as a leading example, a model with observable, tradable...

Measuring income gaps across family backgrounds is crucial for evaluating inequality and informing policy. I develop a multidimensional approach and apply it to Dutch administrative data with exceptionally rich information on parents and extended family. This approach reveals strikingly larger...