Research work in this area is concentrated on the study of the determinants and constraints of household investment behaviour in developing economies. By employing either large or tailored data sources, combined with cutting-edge analytical tools, our projects address some of the urgent policy issues less-developed countries face. In 2020 the Research Unit has been working mainly on social learning and agricultural technology adoption in developing economies. We did so by working on three different projects: i) Innovation and Social Networks in a Resettled Community in Brazil; ii) Global firms and development in Africa. LdA fellows have been also involved in academic and policy work on migration and development, in particular by consulting the UNDP (Africa Borderlands Centre) on the determinants of mobility of cross-border communities in Africa. The research team has been also working on the socio-economic impact of hosting asylum seekers in Italy.
The area is coordinated by Mariapia Mendola (Professor of Economics, University of Milano Bicocca and IZA Fellow). Resident researchers working in this area are Jacopo Bonan, Francesco Campo, Andrea Guariso, Sara Giunti, Federico Maggio and Giulia Tura. Non-resident researchers include Margherita Comola (PSE), Guido Friebel (Frankfurt), Carla Inguaggiato (Bologna), Harounan Kazianga (Oklahoma), Giovanni Prarolo (Bologna). Pre-doc researchers are Irene Solmone and Stefano Tarroni.
Details on latest research projects can be found below.
