Cooperative Culture and the Birth of Modern Enterprises in China

Demand for Retirement Insurance: What Do People Want?

This article discusses the diversity and preference variations in the demand for retirement insurance among urban residents in China, particularly the high demand for health-related insurance such as critical illness (CI) and long-term care (LTC) insurance, and how individual financial circumstances, risk appetites, and bequest motives significantly influence their choice of retirement insurance products.

Bonds of Love: Patriotism and the Rise of Modern Banks

This article discusses that patriotism could be an alternative source of trust in government and financial institutions, particularly during challenging times.

The Effects of a Multifaceted Poverty-Alleviation Program on Rural Income and Household Behavior in China

This study examines the effects of a government-led, large-scale, multifaceted poverty-alleviation program on rural income in China. We find that the program has a positive impact on national key poor counties, with a 10.9% increase in rural income. This effect mainly arises via industrial support, agricultural development, and public service improvement. Strategies that are consistent with local comparative advantages and incentivize local officials to reduce poverty yield more significant effects. Household-level analyses suggest that the program changes household income and expenditure, and the effects are particularly substantial for the poorest households. The study provides novel insights and policy implications for China’s recent experience with poverty alleviation.

Digital Distractions with Peer Influence: The Impact of Mobile App Usage on Academic and Labor Market Outcomes

We present the first comprehensive evidence of how app usage affects academic performance and early career outcomes. App usage is contagious: a one standard deviation (around 3.5 hours per day) increase in roommates’ app usage raises an individual’s own app usage by 5.8%, with substantial heterogeneity across students. A one standard deviation increase in app usage reduces GPAs by 36.2% of a within-cohort-major standard deviation and lowers wages by 2.3%. The effect of roommates’ app usage is over half the size of an individual’s own usage effect. High-frequency GPS data reveal that high app usage crowds out time in study halls and increases late arrivals at and absences from lectures.