Working Papers
The Gig Economy and Crime in Brazil [SSRN]
This study leverages the staggered rollout of the largest food delivery platform in Brazil (iFood) across municipalities in São Paulo state to investigate how the expansion of gig work affects the level and geographic distribution of crime. This relationship is not clear ex ante: while a positive labor market shock should increase the opportunity cost of crime, greater work flexibility also makes it easier to shift back and forth between criminal activity and employment. Moreover, by employing low-skilled workers to deliver goods in high-income neighborhoods, gig work could alter the spatial incidence of crime, especially in very segregated cities. I find that the introduction of iFood reduced crime, including violent crime, and that this effect persisted over time. The effect is larger in magnitude at times of day when the returns to delivery work are highest, but is still present when delivery demand is low. I find no evidence that delivery work is shifting crime towards neighborhoods that demand delivery services, and the effect is stronger in lower-income neighborhoods, where delivery workers tend to reside.
Female Labor Productivity Reduces Domestic Violence: Evidence from Peru [SRRN]
This study investigates the impact of greater economic opportunities for women on domestic violence in Peru. I construct exogenous shifters of gender-specific labor productivity by exploiting gender-specific specialization in the production of major export crops, along with time variation in international crop prices and cross-sectional variation in crop planting patterns. Female labor productivity reduces domestic violence, including severe physical violence and female homicide. These effects are not driven by changes in total household income, increases in women's bargaining power in the household, or changes in beliefs about the role and treatment of women. Instead, evidence suggests that results are driven by increases in women's independence and the ability to seek support outside the domestic sphere. The effects are stronger in districts with more unequal gender norms, in contrast to theories of "male backlash" that predict the opposite.
Other Research
Frankenthal, I. A., Alves, M. C., Tak, C., & Achatz, M. I. (2022). Cancer Surveillance for Patients with Li-Fraumeni Syndrome in Brazil: A Cost-Effectiveness Analysis. The Lancet Regional Health–Americas, 12.
This study aims to assess the cost-effectiveness of introducing annual screening in the Brazilian public health-care system for patients diagnosed with Li-Fraumeni Syndrome, a prevalent cancer pre-disposition syndrome associated with high risks for a diverse spectrum of malignancies.
Frankenthal, I., & Dutta, D. (2021). Risk Factors for Gender-based Violence: The Case of Indian Agriculture. Oxfam Research Report.
This study documents the incidence of domestic and workplace violence among Indian female agricultural workers, and the factors that put these women at risk. It also describes in depth the working conditions and gender-based violence in tea plantations, where the vast majority of labor is female and qualitative evidence suggests violence against women is particularly prevalent.