Publications

För länge sedan fanns prinsar och bönder, och mycket få däremellan. Klyftorna mellan rika och fattiga finns fortfarande kvar i vårt samhälle, men den stora berättelsen är en annan. Idag är vi rikare ä…

Differences in the handling of bottlenecks between the power exchange and the real-time markets used by the system operator can give rise to arbitrage opportunities. This can cause increased consumer…

This article analyzes new evidence on long-run trends in aggregate wealth accumulation and wealth inequality in Western countries. The new findings suggest that wealth-income ratios were lower before…

Why do we obsess about money? Are products made to break? Why do we work so hard? How do we help the poor? Why do humans create markets everywhere they go? A fact-filled research-based graphic non-fic…

The looks of political candidates can influence voter behavior, often serving as a shortcut for those lacking detailed information. Attractive candidates are often viewed as more competent and may gai…

Private equity buyouts have sparked debates among labor unions and worker representatives on how they affect workers. This chapter provides an overview of academic evidence on how private equity buyou…

This paper provides a brief and accessible guide to the Marginal Value of Public Funds (MVPF) and offers some new perspectives on its application to the evaluation of tax policy. Specifically, the pap…

We study how the presence of promotion competition in the labor market affects household specialization patterns. By embedding a promotion tournament model in a household setting, we show that special…

Startups face a trade-off between short-term profitability versus long-term growth where investors tolerate prolonged financial losses. We present a new theory and empirical evidence about the existen…

The discussion of the growth consequences of socialism has fulminated for a century, sparked off by the Calculation Debate in the 1920s and 30s, and has concerned the performance of the Soviet Union i…

This paper investigates the role of individualism in explaining cross-country differences in working from home (WFH). Using data from the Current Population Survey (CPS) of the United States and the E…

The renaissance of industrial policy has been promoted by a breed of public intellectuals with considerable financial interests as they are well paid consultants for governments.

The US and its allies risk paying a higher longer-term price if they fail to repel Russian aggression.

We study how sourcing of applied and basic knowledge is related to the likelihood and speed at which inventions become innovations as well as their profitability. By using a patent database with uniqu…

Commenters regularly claim that parliament leaders in Latin America and the Caribbean favor their birth regions. Using granular data on nightlight intensity from up to 183,000 micro regions across 25…

We study the mental health of PhD students in Sweden using comprehensive administrative data on prescriptions, specialist care visits, hospitalizations, and causes of death. We find that about 7% (5%)…

Since comprehensive data became available five years ago, a literature about academic freedom has emerged. This paper surveys studies on the causes and consequences of academic freedom. The new litera…

A majority of the world’s countries ban forms of blasphemous expressions, often arguing that such legislation is necessary to prevent conflicts and terrorism. We explore the association between types…

Not only do corporations discriminate, but states do as well. We relate measures of government discrimination against various groups to measures of institutions and culture. We find that states behave…

This article integrates findings from several different case studies on mission-oriented innovation policies (MOIPs) and makes use of the existing literature to briefly describe three other missions:…

We examine immigrant self-employment in Sweden during 2011–2021 – a turbulent decade with a large influx of refugees into the country and the outbreak of the global COVID-19 pandemic. Four outcome var…

Protecting biodiversity will require the phase-out of harmful production at a large scale. However, some of these stranded investments will be foreign-owned, and can therefore be protected by the more…

Once there were princes and peasants and very few between. The extremes of wealth and poverty are still with us, but that shouldn't blind us to the fact our societies have been utterly transformed for…

Aging populations strain pension systems, prompting policymakers to introduce partial retirement schemes to incentivize workers to retire later. I study the impact of introducing partial retirement wi…

This paper studies how a special wage increase for assistant nurses in Sweden affected income and employment. Workers in the public sector receive wages based on negotiations between unions and employ…

We study how financing constraints affect the cash holdings of small and medium-sized enterprises. There has been little empirical work on this topic, even though these firms often face financial cons…

This paper develops a comprehensive framework for analyzing the revenue, efficiency and social welfare implications of top income taxation. It generalizes the Saez (2001) formula for the optimal top t…

Using the random assignment of university engineering students to peer groups during introductory freshmen weeks, this paper studies how a student's parental income and facial attractiveness affect th…

Populist parties have grown rapidly in popularity in most European countries, and are increasingly common in government coalitions. Analyzing 183 populist parties in 33 European countries from 1980 to…

This paper examines the electoral impact of increased foreign tourism, using data from Croatia. Exploiting exogenous variation in travel times to coastal municipalities from improved road infrastructu…

We investigate the role of gender norms in shaping parental childcare following changes in the relative take-home pay of mothers and fathers. Exploiting variation from Swedish tax reforms, we estimate…

Despite the comprehensive previous research on different aspects of inventions and externalities spanning both the micro and macro levels, no prior studies have, to our knowledge, examined the relatio…

The application of machine learning (ML) to big data has become increasingly important. We propose a model where firms have access to the same ML, but incumbents have access to historical data. We sho…

The creation and scaling of startups are inherently linked to risk-taking, with various types of owners handling these risks differently. This paper investigates the influence of an active venture cap…

Local resistance towards wind power is a central challenge for the energy transition, implying that legally imposed compensation schemes for nearby residents may become more prevalent in the near futu…

Research indicates that education quality – measured by test scores in international student surveys – predicts economic growth. In this paper, we extend previous findings up to 2016 and analyse test…

All organizations need to allocate labor to production and administration. In many cases – particularly within the public sector – the optimal allocation is far from obvious. Indeed, vocal concerns ha…

The mentality of Build Back Better is not just confined to the US. Around the world, governments are resorting to the ancient tradition of using massive amounts of resources to build things that glori…

Can competition and the existence of profit-seeking actors in the school market improve educational quality? To see cost-efficient, long-term improvements, we identify the school system’s capacity for…

The EU and many countries have committed to be climate-neutral by 2050. Combined with the Paris Agreement, this means there is strong presure to transition to climate-neutral technoligies. This pressu…

Developing countries have 1300+ investment treaties with developed countries. Investment treaties are often alleged to constrain developing country climate policies. This paper examines four treaty re…

Academic freedom is a cornerstone of modern academic life. It is not only implied by basic liberal principles but also contributes to scientific progress and economic growth. It is therefore important…

Many countries have implemented quasi-markets to enhance entrepreneurship and innovation in welfare service provision. However, the benefits have generally been limited; this can also be observed in S…

Terrorism causes anger and fear among citizens, but also often leads to counterterrorist legislation (CTL). We explore determinants of CTL and whether it affects the likelihood of terrorism and limits…

In the first chapter, the authors review the evolution of borders throughout European history. The modern concept of borders as dividing lines is a fairly recent phenomenon and constitutes somewhat of…

As the European Union (EU) grapples with increased external and internal trade barriers, it stands at a crossroads. This paper examines the EU's changing perspective on globalization, reflecting a shi…

In the last chapter, the authors take stock of the challenges which are besetting the European Union’s (EU) internal and external borders from the perspective of contemporary events and crises, and ev…

This study provides a comprehensive analysis of the generational wealth transfer within Sweden’s public pay-as-you-go pension system introduced in 1960. Using extensive administrative registers, the p…

This study outlines how the corporate governance of emerging market firms is influenced by corporate affiliation and institutional embeddedness. We argue that the stronger the business group affiliati…

This book examines the implications for the EU of a radically changed international context characterized by systemic rivalry, competition over norms and regulations, and growing strategic tension. Gl…

Our use of longitudinal register data combined with a unique survey allows us to offer a more comprehensive picture of rural self-employment than in previous studies. We find that self-employed in rur…

This thesis comprises four self-contained papers that rely on applied micro-econometric methods to understand which factors are important in shaping the gender wage gap in globalized firms and how fir…

This chapter is the introduction to the Handbook of Research on Economic Freedom, an overview of research on the causes and consequences of the market economy. The chapter places current research in a…

The increase in support for populist politicians has led to an intensive search for explanations. A free market economy that creates winners and losers due to rapid economic transformation has been su…

This chapter surveys the literature on the association between economic freedom and de facto respect of human rights. Noting that a plethora of theoretical channels might connect the two, empirical ev…

We study the causal effects of previous experience and language skills when newly arrived refugees in Sweden apply for job openings by means of a field experiment. Applications were sent from randomly…

This handbook provides a comprehensive overview of current research on economic freedom, including studies on how more market-oriented policies affect growth, entrepreneurship, and equality

Academic freedom is a cornerstone of modern academic life. It is not only implied by basic liberal principles but also contributes to scientific progress and economic growth. It is therefore important…

This comprehensive report delves into the economic policy responses of the Nordic countries amidst the tumultuous period marked by the COVID-19 pandemic, the subsequent recovery phase, the energy cris…

Politicians and international organisations advocate for increased regulation and government control of industry in order to handle climate change and reduce overall greenhouse gas emissions. However,…

There is widespread concern, especially in certain feminist circles, that a market-oriented economic system, or capitalism, disfavors women. This could take many forms, such as lower wages for the sam…

We evaluate a non-targeted summer youth employment program (SYEP) for high school students aged 16–19 in Stockholm, Sweden, where public sector job offers were as good as randomly assigned. In contras…

The European Union (EU) is becoming more inward looking and more hesitant towards globalization. This paper examines recent transformations in EU's economic policies, with a focus on international tra…

This open access book raises some central questions: Do we need moonshot policies to spur innovation and economic growth? What are the risks associated with such policies?

The notion that society should be organized around large so-called missions has gained momentum in public debate, and the reemergence of active industrial policy across the world has been inspired by…

This chapter integrates findings from several different case studies on mission-oriented innovation policies (MOIPs) and makes use of the existing literature to briefly describe three other missions:…

Governments can provide targeted R&D subsidies and/or tax incentives to spur innovation and growth in the business sector. This chapter analyzes the theoretical pros and cons of these policy instr…

Mission-oriented innovation policies are becoming increasingly popular among policymakers and scholars. We maintain that these policies are based on an overly mechanistic view of innovation and econom…

This paper investigates the association between relative mobile broadband penetration (i.e. mobile broadband connections in total mobile connections) and carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions globally. The s…

Productivity in Sweden, measured as GDP per hour worked, has in recent decades been among the highest in the world. The fact that Swedish wealth measured as GDP per capita is still not among the highe…

The notion that society should be organized around large so-called missions has gained momentum in public debate, and the reemergence of active industrial policy across the world has been inspired by…

Based on a review of 700+ peer-reviewed articles since 1990, identified using text mining methodology and supervised machine learning, we analyze how neo-Schumpeterian growth theorists relate to the e…

Why has collaboration become increasingly central to technological progress? We document the role of lowered travel costs by combining patent data with the rollout of the Swedish railroad network in t…

No matter whether one belives climate change is a major threat to humanity or a minor bump on the road to global prosperity, most Western governments have set clear goals for how much they aim to redu…

This paper examines the identity and origins of Swedish inventors prior to World War I drawing on the universe of patent records linked to census data. We document that the rise of innovation during S…

We highlight a new factor behind integration: tolerance in the immigrants’ background culture. We hypothesize that it is easier to partake of economic, civic-political, and social life in a new countr…

The net-zero agreement on carbon emission from Paris 2015 gives a key role to fossil-free energy technologies with an expected multifold growth rate over the coming decades, when successively replacin…

The New Keynesian model, augmented with the working capital channel, predicts that a rise in the policy rate causes firms that use more working capital to increase their prices more, and that the pass…

The High and Late Middle Ages in Sweden were revolutionary periods characterized by an economy that went from local self-sufficiency in the countryside to increased division of labour and emerging cit…

The High and Late Middle Ages in Sweden were revolutionary periods characterized by an economy that went from local self-sufficiency in the countryside to increased division of labour and emerging cit…

We identify dementia risk factors using demographic data for Swedish cohorts 1932–1950. Factors are advanced maternal age, sibling spacing, and twin births. These factors increase dementia risk, espec…

We study commercialization of personal data through personalized advertising by a content platform. Content consumption generates productive data about consumer preferences. The firm invests in artifi…

This study evaluated discrimination against children with Type 1 Diabetes Mellitus (T1DM) in Swedish sports clubs through a field experiment. Two fictitious fathers sent emails to 193 top-division clu…

A common claim holds that investment treaties reduce the willingness of host countries to regulate foreign-owned, environmentally-stranded, investments. A counter-argument is that the treaties can yie…

Europe faces significant challenges in the coming decades: geopolitical, demographic, technological, increased competition, climate-related, and health issues due to an aging population, to mention a…

We use population-wide tax register data to document the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on firm sales, tax revenues, and sick pay in Sweden. The pandemic impact is identified using within-year, betwe…

This paper integrates findings from several different case studies on Mission-Oriented Innovation Policies (MOIPs) and makes use of existing literature to briefly describe three other missions: The Wa…

Many electricity markets use capacity mechanisms to support generation owners. Capacity payments can mitigate imperfections associated with “missing money” in the spot market and solve transitory capa…

Many countries’ insolvency systems focus on restructuring financial liabilities, and ignore operational liabilities such as leases and long-term supplier contracts. We model insolvency procedures with…

We investigate the impact of attending a free school in England – that is, a new start-up school that enjoys considerable autonomy while remaining in the state sector. We analyse the effects of two se…

Beliefs about whether luck or effort determines individuals’ economic outcomes in life (luck vs effort beliefs) are central for individuals’ opinions on inequality and political preferences. Those who…

Over the past 30 years, the use of municipally owned corporations (MOCs) has increased rapidly in Sweden. Proponents of MOCs claim that they promote efficiency. However, at the same time, critics stre…

Private equity buyouts have sparked debates among labor unions and worker representatives on how they affect workers. This chapter provides an overview of academic evidence on how private equity buyou…

We study competition between political parties in repeated elections with probabilistic voting, allowing a multidimensional policy space and multiple political parties. This model entails multiple equ…

In a representative democracy politicians should either implement policies that voters want or policies that politicians believe are in voters long-term interest, even if voters currently oppose them.…

Mission-oriented innovation policies are becoming increasingly popular among policymakers and scholars. We maintain that these policies are based on an overly mechanistic view of innovation and econom…

The association between freedom of expression – freedom of speech and the freedom of the media – and social conflict is theoretically ambiguous and politically highly contested. On one side of the deb…