2025 Social Economics Conference

The Program in Behavioral Economics Research at BFI and The Normal Lab are excited to host the second Social Economics Conference (SEC), taking place on November 7–8, 2025. This conference will feature work that uses a variety of methods, from theory to experiments, with a special focus on work that improves our understanding of pressing social issues such as conflict, political polarization, discrimination, and mental health.
This conference is by invitation only. If you have any questions, please contact bfi-events@uchicago.edu.
Agenda
Registration & Breakfast
Welcome Remarks
Gendered Spheres of Learning and Household Decision Making over Fertility
Alessandra Voena, Stanford University
Break
Legal Therapy: Coercion, the Courts, and Structural Transformation in China
Noam Yuchtman, London School of Economics
Break
Can Debiasing Law Enforcement Officers Improve Performance?
Maria Micaela Sviatschi, Princeton University
Lunch
First Floor Dining Room
Never Enough: Dynamic Status Incentives in Organizations
Hans-Joachim Voth, University of Zurich
Break
Gender Views: A Restricted Path for Men and a Mission Impossible for Women
Muriel Niederle, Stanford University
Break
The Effect of Mainland Chinese Growth on Taiwanese Support for Reunification
Nancy Qian, Northwestern University
Conference Adjourns
Conference Dinner
By Invitation Only
Registration & Breakfast
Identity and Institutional Change: Evidence from First Names in Germany, 1700–1850
Davide Cantoni, University of Munich
Break
Frictions in News Consumption: Evidence from Social Media
Luca Braghieri, Bocconi University
Break
Meaning at Work
Nava Ashraf, London School of Economics
Lunch
First Floor Dining Room
Learning About Outgroups: The Impact of Broad versus Deep Interactions
Arkadev Ghosh, Duke University






