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MATTEO BOBBA
http://www.pse.ens.fr/junior/bobba/
[email protected]
Italian citizen
PARIS SCHOOL OF ECONOMICS
Placement Director: Pr. Christophe Chamley
[email protected]
Professional Address:
PSE - 48 boulevard Jourdan
75014 Paris, France.
+33 (0)1 4313 63 11
+33143136330
Personal address:
92 Rue Oberkampf
75011 Paris, France.
+33 (0)6 4261 0711
Graduate Studies
2008-present
Paris School of Economics. PhD in Economics.
Thesis Title: “Essays in Development Microeconomics”
Expected Completion Date: June 2011.
Paris School of Economics. MRes in Economics - 2nd year.
Universitat Pompeu Fabra, Barcelona, Spain. MSc in Economics.
2007-2008
2004-2005
Undergraduate Studies
1999-2004
Università Bocconi, Milan, Italy. Bachelor in Economics (4-year degree).
Thesis Committee and References
Prof. François Bourguignon
(advisor)
Paris School of Economics
+33 (0)1 4313 6369
[email protected]
Prof. Orazio Attanasio
University College London
Department of Economics
+44 (0)20 7679 5880
[email protected]
Prof. Marc Gurgand
Paris School of Economics
+33 (0)1 4313 6305
[email protected]
Research Interests
Development, Applied Microeconomics, Microeconometrics.
Awards
2008-2011
2004
Ile De France PhD Scholarship.
Angelo Costa Award for outstanding dissertations in economics, Italy.
Publications
“Weak Instruments and Weak Identification in Estimating the Effects of Education on Democracy” (with D. Coviello). Economics Letters, 96 (2007) 301-306.
Teaching Experience
2009 - 2010 Fall
2009 Fall
T.A. Graduate Microeconomics. Paris School of Economics, Master
in Public Policy and Development (Prof. S. Lambert).
T.A. Graduate Econometrics. ENSAE, Paris (Prof. E. Leuven).
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Research Experience and Other Employment
2005-2007
2004
Research Assistant: Research Department, Inter-American Development
Bank (IADB). Washington DC.
Research Assistant: IGIER, Università Bocconi. Milan
Presentations
2010
2009
2008
2007
2006
NEUDC (MIT), Applied Economics Workshop (Petralia), Development Lunch
Seminar (PSE).
EUDN Scientific Meeting (Paris), EUDN PhD Workshop (Oxford). EDePo-IFS
(London), Applied Economics Lunch Seminar (PSE).
LACEA (Rio de Janeiro), Impact Evaluation Network (Rio de Janeiro).
LACEA (Bogotà), CGD (Washington DC), World Bank (Washington DC),
IADB (Washington DC).
International Conference on Panel Data (Cambridge), LAMES (Mexico City),
DFID (London), IADB (Washington DC).
Research Papers
“Spatial Externalities and Social Multipliers in Schooling Interventions”.
Job Market Paper #1 (with Jérémie Gignoux).
Abstract: In the context of a large-scale human capital intervention in rural Mexico, we study
the effects of the geographic proximity between recipients on individual school attendance decisions. In order to identify program externalities, we use exogenous variations in the number
of beneficiary localities in the surroundings of each village. We find large and positive spillover
effects on secondary school enrollment decisions amongst children in the treated group, but
no evidence of such effects for children in the control group. This remarkable heterogeneity,
complemented by some additional evidence, suggest that the program has induced social interactions amongst neighboring recipients. Our preferred estimate implies a substantial social
multiplier effect of the intervention: a one standard deviation increase in the number of beneficiary localities in the surroundings of each village raises enrollment rates by 4.1 percentage
points.
“Liquidity, Risk and Occupational Choices”
Job Market Paper #2 (with Milo Bianchi).
Abstract: We explore which financial constraints matter the most in the choice of becoming
an entrepreneur. We consider a randomly assigned welfare program in rural Mexico and show
that cash transfers significantly increase entry into entrepreneurship. We then exploit the
cross-households variation in the timing of these transfers and find that current occupational
choices are significantly more responsive to the transfers expected for the future than to those
currently received. Guided by a simple occupational choice model, we conclude that the
program has promoted entrepreneurship by enhancing the willingness to bear risk as opposed
to simply relaxing current liquidity constraints.
Work in Progress
“School Choice, Peer Effects and Educational Achievement” (with François Bourguignon).
“Political Cash Transfers? Public Expenditures and Political Competition in Mexico” (with
Christian Lehmann).
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Reports and Non-academic Publications
“Aid and Growth, Politics Matters” (with Andrew Powell). IADB WP 601, Jan 2007.
“Multilateral Intermediation of Foreign Aid: what is the trade off for donor countries?” (with
Andrew Powell). IADB WP 594, Nov. 2006.
Languages
Italian (mother tongue), English (fluent), Spanish (fluent), French (fluent), Portuguese (basic).
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