Social desirability bias (SDB) is a pervasive threat to the validity of survey and experimental data. Respondents might often misreport sensitive attitudes and behaviors to appear more socially acceptable. We begin by synthesizing empirical evidence on the prevalence and magnitude of SDB across various domains, focusing on studies with individual-level benchmarks. We then critically assess commonly used strategies to mitigate SDB, highlighting how they can sometimes fail by creating confusion or inadvertently increasing perceived sensitivity. To help researchers navigate these challenges, we offer practical guidance on selecting the most suitable tools for different research contexts. Finally, we examine how SDB can distort treatment effects in experiments and discuss mitigation strategies.

 In recent years, the support of populist parties has risen strongly in Western Democracies; the Brexit vote in the United Kingdom, the success of the Front National in France and the rise of the AfD in Germany are very prominent examples of this phenomenon. A prominent literature strand proposes the cultural backlash hypothesis to be an explanation of this trend: Populist voting behaviour is driven by a reaction against progressive cultural changes. Progressive value shifts have created a sense of displacement among those with more traditional views leading to a higher appeal of populist parties. In this project, I aim to experimentally isolate this channel and prove the causal power of this hypothesis. 

If you have any comments on this, let me know!

In this paper, I argue that the presence of investors who gamble on financial markets can distort asset prices. I present a stylized model with two agents, an agent investing according to her consumption preferences and an agent who gambles on the stock market. By systematically buying into risky assets, the gambling agent increases the market price for

risk compared to a pareto-efficient benchmark equilibrium.

I have this model lying around, if someone wants to do something with it, let me know!

In this project, I focus on the question: 

How do the EU agricultural subsidies affect local economies in Europe?