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Rourke O’Brien

@rourkeobrien.bsky.social
3.2K followers 1.3K following 24 posts

Associate Prof of Sociology @ Yale public finance, economic mobility, household finance, health, demography, public policy

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Reposted by Rourke O’Brien
Paul Griffiths @disgwylfa.bsky.social · 12/09/2026
Another thoughtful review www.opusklassiek.nl/cd-recensies...
opusklassiek.nl
Recensie (cd) - Baca: Stirrings Still - Paul Griffiths, Jack Quartet - OpusKlassiek
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Paul Griffiths @disgwylfa.bsky.social · 04/09/2026
On release day, a first review of "Stirrings Still" from Tyran Grillo: ecmreviews.com/2026/09/03/s...
ecmreviews.com
Samuel Beckett: Stirrings Still (ECM New Series 2801)
Samuel BeckettTrevor BačaStirrings Still Paul Griffiths narratorJACK QuartetChristopher Otto violinAustin Wulliman violinJohn Pickford Richards violaJay Campbell violoncell…
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Paul Griffiths @disgwylfa.bsky.social · 06/08/2026
Coming soon... ecmrecords.com/product/samu...
ecmrecords.com
Samuel Beckett, Trevor Bača: Stirrings Still - ECM Records
Stirrings Still was Samuel Beckett’s last message in prose, completed in 1987, and first published the following year. More monologue than story, it comes from a narrator on the edge between life and ...
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Elizabeth Wrigley-Field @wrigleyfield.bsky.social · 20/07/2026
In the US, at the county and state levels, we find that this same relationship used to hold -- but no longer does. 2019, vs. 2010, shows a "Preston curve reversal." The curve shifted DOWN.
Plotting life expectancy against per capita income: US states look similar to the international "Preston curve" from 1980-2010 but the curve shifts down, not up, for 2019 vs. 2010The 2019 curve is also below the 2010 curve for counties
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Elizabeth Wrigley-Field @wrigleyfield.bsky.social · 20/07/2026
That's why the whole curve shifts up--even though the same absolute income indicates a relatively poorer country in 1960 vs. 1930, countries at that income have longer longevity in 1960 The whole world is "richer" in the form of life-saving technology and knowledge, so money buys more lifespan
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Elizabeth Wrigley-Field @wrigleyfield.bsky.social · 20/07/2026
Our paper jumps off from a classic demographic phenomenon: the Preston Curve W/in any given year, people live longer in richer countries than poorer ones, tho this flattens out at high levels of income (once you're rich enough, being richer doesn't matter) BUT the same $ buys more longevity later
The "Preston curve" plots national life expectancy against per capita income (in constant dollars) at multiple time points. This graph shows a similar logarithmic-plateau shape in the 1930s and 1960s, shifted upward for the 1960s. (The post explains the meaning of this curve.)
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Elizabeth Wrigley-Field @wrigleyfield.bsky.social · 20/07/2026
New working paper from Ritikaa Khanna, @rourkeobrien.bsky.social, @astokespop.bsky.social, @atheendar.bsky.social, & me We apply a new lens to the great (non-Covid) debate of US mortality studies: What's up w the 2010s? It emphasizes that US longevity worsened against a background of increasing $$
nber.org
The U.S. Mortality Crisis as a Preston Curve Reversal
Founded in 1920, the NBER is a private, non-profit, non-partisan organization dedicated to conducting economic research and to disseminating research findings among academics, public policy makers, an...
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AEA Journals @aeajournals.bsky.social · 25/06/2026
Forthcoming in the AER: "Rationing by Race" by Manasvini Singh and Atheendar Venkataramani.
aeaweb.org
Rationing by Race
(Forthcoming Article) - We document how deepening resource scarcity results in rationing on the basis of race in a highstakes setting: health care. Using detailed, time-stamped data on 107,000 inpatient admissions to a large health system, we find that in-hospital mortality increases for Black, but not White, patients as hospitals reach capacity. These findings are not explained by differential patient selection. We identify rationing by wait times as a mechanism, documenting that sicker Black patients wait longer for care than healthier White patients at almost all capacity levels. Text analysis of unstructured clinical notes reveals rationing of provider effort as another mechanism.
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Emma Zang @dremmazang.bsky.social · 04/06/2026
New piece out today in Science with @rourkeobrien.bsky.social. Remote work gave many people flexibility. It also changed how workers build everyday connection, support, mentoring, and belonging. www.science.org/doi/10.1126/...
science.org
The lost social infrastructure of work
Remote work has substantially increased social isolation, with measurable consequences for mental health
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Opportunity for Health @oppforhealthlab.bsky.social · 17/04/2026
Can economic #opportunity help flatten the #income-#health gradient in the United States? Check out our new @medrxivpreprint.bsky.social by Anant Mishra, @rourkeobrien.bsky.social, and Atheen Venkataramani! Paper here: www.medrxiv.org/content/10.6... Key figure:
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Manuel Schechtl @schechtlm.eurosky.social · 13/04/2026
New paper documenting a negative association between childhood exposure to local wealth inequality and inter-class social ties in adulthood. If children have fewer chances to meet peers from different class backgrounds, those divides may persist far beyond childhood.
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Atheendar Venkataramani @atheendar.bsky.social · 20/03/2026
🚨@oppforhealthlab.bsky.social has a new website!!🚨 Fully redesigned, and full of helpful summaries of our work and associated resources. Our mission: "Advancing health by expanding opportunity and hope." Find out how: opportunityforhealth.org
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Robert Manduca @robertmanduca.bsky.social · 09/03/2026
With this data, you can identify which individual jurisdictions have per capita tax bases way higher than their metro average—benefiting from their regional economies and infrastructure, but not contributing to the regional tax base. They’re municipal tax havens!
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Robert Manduca @robertmanduca.bsky.social · 09/03/2026
Some collaborators and I used property tax records to put together a dataset of the per capita tax base for every municipality in the country bsky.app/profile/bhig...
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Robert Manduca @robertmanduca.bsky.social · 09/03/2026
@nerd4cities.bsky.social Video suggestion: the top 10 most egregious municipal tax havens in the United States www.taxbasefragmentation.net
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Emma Zang @dremmazang.bsky.social · 06/03/2026
Call for Submissions: AI for Social Science Methodology (Yale) • Keynote: @nachristakis.bsky.social • Panel with editors of leading journals on publishing AI research • Mentoring roundtables for early-career scholars • Generous travel support Discussion-driven, high-quality research.
yalefds.swoogo.com
Home
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Atheendar Venkataramani @atheendar.bsky.social · 27/02/2026
The #income-#health gradient among working-age adults in the United States in areas with high vs. low economic opportunity @oppforhealthlab.bsky.social
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Manuel Schechtl @schechtlm.eurosky.social · 27/02/2026
Results show a marked relationship between increases in local wealth inequality and reduced mobility for children in the lower half of the income distribution.
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Manuel Schechtl @schechtlm.eurosky.social · 27/02/2026
⚠️ New WP ⚠️ with @ftorche.bsky.social: Can childhood exposure to local wealth inequality help explain growing class gaps in income mobility? Short answer: Yes! Read the full answer here: doi.org/10.31235/osf... #Demography #Sociology #EconSky
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Jen Jennings @jenjennings.bsky.social · 17/02/2026
New Postdoctoral Research Associate positions at @Princeton's Office of Population Research!
postdoctoral associate at Princeton ad
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Jake Grumbach @jakemgrumbach.bsky.social · 06/01/2026
🚨 the best state policy & public opinion database is now online. ~200 (!!!) state policies and 80 public opinion series on abortion, labor, taxes, environment, guns, education… dynamicdemocracy.shinyapps.io Massive public goods provision from @devincaughey.bsky.social & @chriswarshaw.bsky.social
Welcome to the Dynamic Democracy App
This app lets you manipulate, explore, and download the Dynamic Democracy datasets with information on state policies and public opinion assembled by Devin Caughey and Chris Warshaw. Click on the triangle next to each category for more details.
• State Policies: This dataset includes information on approximately 200 policies in place in at least one state between 1936 and 2024.
• State Policy Ideology : Measures summarizing aggregate policy outputs in each state/year between 1936-2024.
• Public Opinion: Measures summarizing state publics views on approximately 80 issues, covering 1936-2024.
• Mass Ideology.: Measures of state publics' economic and cultural ideological preferences, 1936-2021.
• Policy Proximity.: Measures of how closely state policies match public preferences.
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Allison Orris @aorris.bsky.social · 13/11/2025
New interactive map from @CenterOnBudget showing out-of-pocket premium increases in every congressional district due to premium tax credit enhancements expiring. Explore it here: www.cbpp.org/research/hea...
cbpp.org
Marketplace Enrollees Across the Country Face Steep Premium Increases Unless Tax Credit Enhancements Are Extended
Annual premium increase, 60-year-old couple with income of $85,000 (401% FPL), by congressional district, 119th Congress Note: FPL = federal poverty level. Examples are based on 2026 average...
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Atheendar Venkataramani @atheendar.bsky.social · 03/11/2025
1/ New paper w/ @rourkeobrien.bsky.social, @clowenstein.bsky.social, and Elizabeth Bair showing how the Voting Rights Act had starkly different effects on #mortality by race and age -- and the potential importance of #status #threat in explaining these findings. www.nber.org/papers/w34421
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Rene Almeling @ralmeling.bsky.social · 30/09/2025
Yale Sociology is hiring an associate or full professor in quantitative sociology. Come work with me! Applications open tomorrow. Details available here: apply.interfolio.com/174709
apply.interfolio.com
Apply - Interfolio {{$ctrl.$state.data.pageTitle}} - Apply - Interfolio
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Manuel Schechtl @schechtlm.eurosky.social · 16/07/2025
⚠️ New timely WP ⚠️ Rising wealth inequality and democratic backsliding at the US state-level #EconSky #Sociology #PolicySky @stone-lis.bsky.social WP here: doi.org/10.31235/osf...
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Jason Fletcher @jasonmfletcher.bsky.social · 23/01/2025
**Call for Papers** The Advances in Social Genomics Conference Series (TAGC) May 14-16, 2025 UW-Madison @uwmadison.bsky.social Deadline for submissions: March 7, 2025 Funding available for presenters Keynotes: Kelly Bakulski and Dan Belsky isg.wisc.edu/events/the-a...
isg.wisc.edu
The Advances in Social Genomics Conference
Social genomics researchers from across the world convene at the University of Wisconsin–Madison each year to discuss advances in the field.
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Jenn Dowd @drjenndowd.bsky.social · 21/01/2025
Thanks @glebeda.bsky.social for pulling this list together! Consider this a bat signal for population health scientists everywhere... let's GOOOOO. go.bsky.app/FP7rYaJ
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Janet Gornick @janetgornick.bsky.social · 13/01/2025
The GC Wealth Project - an invaluable source for data and research on wealth and wealth-related policies - continues to grow. Check out the latest expansion and update! @stone-lis.bsky.social @morellisal.bsky.social 👇👇👇
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Zach Parolin @zparolin.bsky.social · 08/01/2025
Child poverty in the U.S. is four times as likely to lead to adult poverty than in Denmark and Germany, and twice as likely than in the UK and Australia. Why? I write about our findings on "the intergenerational persistence of poverty" today in The Atlantic: www.theatlantic.com/ideas/archiv...
theatlantic.com
Why Poor American Kids Are So Likely to Become Poor Adults
Most scholarship on the subject focuses on conditions during childhood. But government support during adulthood plays the biggest role.
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Rourke O’Brien @rourkeobrien.bsky.social · 07/01/2025
"Fiscal Centralization and Inequality in Children's Economic Mobility" New research with @schechtlm.bsky.social @zparolin.bsky.social just out in ASR doi.org/10.1177/0003... #sociology #demography #econsky
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Rourke O’Brien @rourkeobrien.bsky.social · 20/12/2024
Great opportunity 👇
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Manuel Schechtl @schechtlm.eurosky.social · 07/03/2024
Thrilled to announce that I am joining UNC-Chapel Hill this fall as Assistant Professor of Public Policy! Many thanks to @stone-lis.bsky.social and everyone who helped me get there.
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Zach Parolin @zparolin.bsky.social · 19/02/2024
Now online at Nature Human Behaviour: "Consumption Responses to an Unconditional Child Allowance in the U.S." We study how the 2021 CTC expansion affected family expenditures using observed (rather than reported) consumption data from 1.3 million establishments. www.nature.com/articles/s41...
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Andrea Tilstra @andreatilstra.bsky.social · 21/12/2023
Interested in mortality? Apply for a POSTDOC with @drjenndowd.bsky.social. I can confirm that it’s a great team & research community! 🗓️: deadline 25 Jan ⏳: 3-years 💷: Grade 7 (£36,024-£44,263) 🧐: investigate the drivers of population mortality! 📍: Oxford, Leverhulme Centre for Demographic Science
my.corehr.com
Job Details
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Manuel Schechtl @schechtlm.eurosky.social · 19/11/2023
Quick look at the UK inheritance tax discussion using the wealthproject.gc.cuny.edu/EIG/ In 2021, the UK raised 0,78% of total tax revenue from inheritance and gifts vs 1,65% in France (in the 1960s, the UK collected over 2,66%!). The UK annually collects about $12 Billion less than France. #EconSky
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Bobby Kogan @bbkogan.bsky.social · 02/11/2023
Just yesterday, CBO released a working paper showing that enrolling kids in Medicaid half pays for itself mostly due to those kids ending up with higher earnings. And CBO said that, if you offset the costs, the net present value of future deficits is reduced by $2 for every $1 spent.
More Perfect Union tweet that says, “Senator Bob Casey has introduced a bill to automatically enroll all children in Medicaid from birth through age 18.

The Medicaid for Every Child Act would mean that no child would ever have to go without health care in this country.”
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Molly White @molly.wiki · 02/11/2023
Sam Bankman-Fried has been found guilty on all charges.
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Regina Baker @rsbaker.bsky.social · 31/10/2023
UNC-CH Sociology is also hiring at the senior full level for a Distinguished Professor position, with preference for expertise in immigration, inequality, or work! Come work with us! 😊 Review of apps begins Nov 15th! See ad linked below for details. unc.peopleadmin.com/postings/268...
unc.peopleadmin.com
William Burwell Harrison Distinguished Professor of Sociology
The Department of Sociology at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill invites applications for a Senior Full Professor to fill the William Burwell Harrison Distinguished Professorship of Soci...
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Manuel Schechtl @schechtlm.eurosky.social · 25/10/2023
'Fiscal Impoverishment in Rich Democracies', joint work with @rourkeobrien.bsky.social, now published in @sfjournal.bsky.social: doi.org/10.1093/sf/s... We invert standard analyses of welfare state policy and poverty by focusing not on poverty alleviation but creation. #Polisky #EconSky #Sociology
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Andrew Perrin @andrewjperrin.bsky.social · 02/10/2023
As part of a transformative expansion, Sociology at Johns Hopkins is poised for significant growth in the coming years. We invite applications for tenured and tenure-track appointments at any rank and in any subfield. [1/2]
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Manuel Schechtl @schechtlm.eurosky.social · 25/09/2023
Visualizing the evolution of estate and inheritance tax exemptions over time. What an insane development! #EconSky and #Polisci, check our interactive website with many other features here: wealthproject.gc.cuny.edu/EIG/graphs/#...
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