Dialogues économiques | AMSE | Aix-Marseille School of Economics

An online media outlet dedicated to making economics accessible, bridging the gap between academic knowledge and the general public. Dialogues économiques publishes articles, video interviews, and infographics, twice a month, providing information on a wide range of topics addressed by economic research. Available in both French and English, the content may be reproduced in its entirety, provided the authors and the source Dialogues économiques are credited (CC BY-NC-ND). Readers can subscribe to receive each new publication directly in their inbox.

Dialogues économiques

Who takes care of the children when their mothers are working?

Is it possible to combine work and family obligations without compromising either? Childcare is an essential factor in the equation. Research by economists Mathieu Lefebvre, Laurène Thil, and Laté A. Lawson reveals how childcare practices vary from country to country, and depend on the mother's socio-economic status.

OCTOBER 28, 2024

Dialogues économiques

Is money in politics good for business?

Economic interests often lie behind the funding of political parties. In the United States, private donations are said to represent a privileged channel through which companies seek favours from the federal government in obtaining public contracts. This is the hypothesis of a team of economic researchers who have looked into the risk of favouritism associated with campaign donations.

OCTOBER 28, 2024

Dialogues économiques

At what cost? Calculating the impact of climate change – today and tomorrow

Mostly unknown outside academic circles, the social discount rate (SDR) is vital for understanding the value of infrastructure investments far into the future. But if that’s especially relevant in a world threatened by climate change, governments and economists have long argued exactly what discount rate to use, or if a fixed rate is even necessary. Economists Christian Gollier, Frederick van der Ploeg and Jiakun Zheng recently developed a major survey to gauge opinion on the SDR across their profession. Between the theoretical importance of project-specific discount rates, and a reluctance to tweak rates in practice, their findings are worth exploring – especially once you consider the need to expand the debate beyond economics.

JUNE 18, 2024

Dialogues économiques

Building your identity on a minefield

Can mining influence the way in which we identify ourselves? According to economists Nicolas Berman, Mathieu Couttenier and Victoire Girard, mining in Africa may intensify feelings of ethnic belonging, by generating feelings of deprivation among the local population. Mining could therefore help explain ethnic fragmentation and certain conflicts observed in Sub-Saharan Africa.

JUNE 4, 2024

Dialogues économiques

How can we assess the impact of deliberation on people's votes?

Consensus conferences, citizens' assemblies, neighbourhood councils, etc. Since the 1980s, deliberation has emerged as a response to the crisis of democracy. But how do you measure its value and impact? For the first time, a team of researchers has studied the role of the tools used to gather participants' opinions.

MAY 21, 2024

Dialogues économiques

How can technology help limit climate change?

At a time when "carbon neutrality" is the central theme of international climate conferences, a team of economists is studying ways that could make this goal a reality.

MAY 6, 2024

Illustration par Lerbank-bbk22 sur Adobe Stock

Dialogues économiques

Gender inequality: pay gaps also exist between companies

In Europe, the pay gap between men and women has halved since the end of the 1990s. However, over the last few years this trend has not continued. A team of researchers in economics has shown that pay differences between companies largely explain these inequalities.

APRIL 23, 2024

Dialogues économiques

Are we all equal when it comes to weight?

Using a novel approach applied to the populations of France, the United Kingdom and the United States, economists explore inequalities in Body Mass Index and highlight a disparity between men and women.

APRIL 2, 2024

San Francisco par Mattia Bericchia sur Unsplash

Dialogues économiques

America's major cities: creating job inequalities

Large American cities are experiencing labor market polarization, characterized by a simultaneous increase in the employment share of both high-skilled and low-skilled jobs. Economists Fabio Cerina, Elisa Dienesch, Alessio Moro, and Michelle Rendal propose that this phenomenon can be attributed to technology shocks that enhance the productivity of highly skilled workers. As these skilled workers increase their participation in the labor market, they also intensify their consumption of personal services, thus generating greater demand for low-skilled jobs.

MARCH 27, 2024

Marché des célibataires, Shangaï © Reinhold Möller/ Wikimedia Commons

Dialogues économiques

Love is in the park: parents' marital preferences in China

In China, parents play a major role in finding a spouse for their children. Economists have studied parental preferences and how they match the wishes of their offspring.

MARCH 12, 2024