Here is my Google scholar profile. This page focuses on current working papers and portrays some work in progress. Publications are listed below.

WORKING PAPERS

Faininger, R. & Flechtner, S. (2024): "Heterogeneous migrant wealth gaps in Germany" (R-R Journal of Economic Inequality)

This paper investigates the migrant wealth gap in Germany using Recentered Influence Function (RIF) decomposition applied to data from the German Socio-Economic Panel of 2017. As an innovation over previous work, we distinguish migrants from high-income and low- and middle-income countries of origin, as well as the first and second generation of migration, and find considerable differences. All migrant sub-groups experience a negative wealth gap with respect to native households, but wealth disparities are notably wider for households originating from low- and middle-income countries: their raw net wealth at the mean corresponds to 32-36 percent of that of natives, whereas households originating from high-income countries possess 78-80 percent. In terms of factors that statistically explain the wealth gaps, the gap of second-generation migrants from high-income countries is merely due to age differences, suggesting high economic integration. The wealth gaps of first-generation migrants are generally less well understood, and factors such as income or education explain only small parts. Remittances and assets abroad might be important drivers. Second-generation migrants from non-rich countries are not nearly as integrated economically as those from rich countries, and existing income and educational gaps do not statistically explain their considerable wealth gap. Here, remittances, assets abroad and different portfolio choices may be important drivers. Overall, our analysis suggests that policy-makers seeking to reduce the migrant wealth gap should address different groups in different ways.

Flechtner, S. and D'Ippoliti, C. (2023): "Individual-level determinants of field of study choices explain only a minor part of horizontal gender segregation" (submitted/ under review)

We review the main economic theories on horizontal gender segregation, with a focus on student-level determinants of field of study choices. The economic literature has first conceptualized field choices as investment in human capital – with explanations based on students’ skills, and the prospective occupations’ expected returns and risks –, then as consumption – based on students’ preferences, and gender-specific social norms. While previous studies have tested these explanations separately, we use a unique dataset of secondary school graduates in Germany to consider all simultaneously. We find that all explanations considered are statistically relevant but substantially only marginally important. Our findings lend support to the recent turn away from individual-level determinants of horizontal segregation, focusing on the roles of schools (e.g. competitiveness of school environment and gender composition), teachers (e.g. teacher gender-matches), and broader communities (e.g availability of role models and peer effects).

Flechtner, S. (2022): "(Why) do poor households under-save? A review of the behavioural literature"

Under-saving of poor households in developing countries is an intensively studied topic in behavioral development economics. According to a growing body of empirical studies, poor households’ savings are constrained by behavioral factors such as self-control problems. This paper reviews the empirical evidence since 2000. The main finding is that

the behavioral analysis of under-saving has produced little robust evidence concerning the relevance of behavioral explanations for under-saving, and implications for policymaking are still rather unclear. Most studies have been dedicated to the study of self-control problems, but clear and unambiguous evidence of a link between self-control problems and under-saving is scarce. Some studies are in themselves inconclusive; at other times, different studies reach contradictory conclusions that are difficult to reconcile, raising concerns about the generalizability and external validity of single studies’ findings. The article concludes by proposing some steps towards the reconciliation of different findings.

WORK IN PROGRESS

Flechtner, S. and D'Ippoliti, C.: "Can women in STEM close the gender gap?"

Flechtner, S. & Hardeck, I.: "Does business taxation influence wage levels?"

Unterein, D., Flechtner, S., Stephan, M. & Werner, A.: "Introducing the 4-day-week in a medium-size firm: effects on productivity, job satisfaction, and health"

Neu, M. & Flechtner, S.: "Public support of climate protection measures in the district of Siegen-Wittgenstein"

Flechtner, S. & Middelanis, M.: "Inequality and the trade-off between socio-economic and ecological goals" (working title)

PUBLICATIONS

Flechtner, S., Lich, U. & Pelz, S. (2024): "Women's decision-making power, cooking fuel adoption and appliance ownership: Evidence from Rwanda, Nepal and Honduras", Energy Research & Social Science118: 103780. 

Universal energy access underpins progress towards achieving many of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), including gender equality (SDG 5). Yet this link is conditioned by a range of contextual factors that warrant careful consideration in designing measures that guide intervention. In this article, we examine the relationship between women’s decision-making power and household energy choices in Honduras, Nepal and Rwanda. Analysing household and individual data from the World Bank’s Multi-Tier Framework Surveys, we develop a measure to proxy women’s decision-making power within a household and assess how this correlates with cooking fuel choices and appliance ownership. We find that Honduran and Nepalese households are up to 20 and 30 percentage points more likely to use clean cooking fuels when women in the household also experience high levels of decision-making power, but find no such associations in Rwanda. In terms of household appliances, we observe mixed results. In Honduras and Nepal, we find evidence that households with higher women’s decision-making power also own a range of household appliance more often, but there is no general pattern across countries as to which appliances this concerns. In Rwanda, households with higher women’s decision-making power own leisure-related devices less often. These descriptive findings highlight patterns of gender- and context-specific preferences over household energy usage relevant to the measurement of energy access and the development of context-aware energy access improvement interventions.

Flechtner, S. (2024): "Beyond Fads and Magic Bullets: The Promise of Behavioural Approaches in Development Economics", Journal of Economic Surveys, https://doi.org/10.1111/joes.12663 .

The history of development economics has been portrayed as a succession of fads and magic bullets. This study inquires whether behavioral approaches to economic development are destined to become such a fad or whether they have long-lasting contributions to offer. I first show that behavioral development economics is not a cohesive field with a consensual definition and propose to distinguish three different views of behavioral development economics: the scarcity view, the non-optimal behavior view, and the psycho-social-cultural view. I provide a systematic review of publications in the field of behavioral development economics from 2000 to 2021, distinguishing these three fields. The nonoptimal view has been, by far, the dominant view, and risk and time preferences stand out as the single-most studied behavioral mechanisms. Finally, I argue that the sub-field's ability to advance the understanding of behavior relevant to the persistence or alleviation of poverty depends crucially on the inclusion of the psycho-social-cultural view. This view has important contributions to offer in terms of (1) the understanding of seemingly nonrational behavior, (2) the identification and measurement of behavioral mechanisms, and (3) the understanding of conditions of external validity, and should be embraced more enthusiastically.

Flechtner, S. & Middelanis, M. (2024): "The Role of the Commodity Price Boom in Shaping Public Social Spending: Evidence from Latin America", World Development 182: 106717.

We study the potential impact of the commodity price boom of 2003 to 2013 onpublic social spending in Latin America. We estimate structural vector autoregressionand local projections for 16 Latin American countries and enquire if we can

attribute increases in public spending on health, education, and social protectionto increases in a country's net commodity export prices. Focusing on the impulseresponses derived from country-specic estimations, we nd a huge variety in response

patterns. We identify three countries where the commodity price boom ledto lasting increases in public social spending (Argentina, Ecuador, Mexico). Someother countries increased their public spending over shorter periods of time of one

or two years and fell back to pre-boom levels thereafter (Brazil, Chile), while yetothers did not respond at all (Bolivia, Colombia, Peru). As expected, we cannot relatepublic social spending with commodity prices in countries without commodityprice boom. Among countries with positive responses, there is no clear tendencyconcerning the function of spending that benets most. We discuss potential explanationsbehind the heterogeneity of our country-wise results and conclude thatthe presence of left-wing governments, fiscal rules, natural resource funds and economicdiversication provide plausible explanations for single country cases, nogeneral patterns emerge. We conclude that the commodity price boom was neither necessary nor sufficient for social policy expansion in Latin America, and factors explaining its effects differ from country to country.

Flechtner, S. (2024): "The reproduction of inequalities through educational aspirations: evidence from teenagers in India", Journal of Development Studies 60(1): 46-66. doi: 10.1080/00220388.2023.2273799.

This paper studies educational aspirations and grade achievements of teenagers in India, using Structural Equation Modelling with data from the Young Lives Study. The analysis differentiates direct effects of relevant socio-economic and individual characteristics on educational output from indirect effects through aspirations. In this sample, some student characteristics – parents’ education, mothers’ caste and the student’s gender – have no direct effect on educational output, but an indirect effect on educational aspirations going through abilities. Students from disadvantaged backgrounds, and in particular girls, are at a disadvantage at age 12 because they have accumulated lower cognitive abilities. Abilities shape aspirations, which then impact educational output beyond the mere effect of abilities. Girls are at a double disadvantage: besides lower average skills at age 12, they developed lower aspirations than boys of the same characteristics. The economic situation of the household was neither directly nor indirectly related with students’ achievements in school. These results help distinguish aspirations as drivers of behaviour from aspirations as correlates of other characteristics, and they have relevant policy implications.

Flechtner, S. & Sánchez-Ancochea, D. (2022): "Why is knowledge accumulation so hard? Exploring econometric research on the determinants of social policy in Latin America", Latin American Research Review 57: 258-277. doi:

10.1017/lar.2022.21.

Many areas in applied econometric research within political economy fail to come up with conclusive findings. This is the case, for example, with studies on the determinants of public social spending in Latin America, a key area of research given the impact of social programs on poverty, inequality, and welfare more generally. In this area, as in others, it is hard to identify clear answers regarding the impact of economic processes and political institutions. Two reasons explain this lack of knowledge accumulation. First, each study uses different data sources and analytical models. Second, some of the empirical strategies required to solve various econometric problems may affect the results. This article questions the role of econometric research as the only method to explore political economy questions and highlights the importance of promoting conversations between complementary methods of both quantitative and qualitative traditions.

Flechtner, S: (2021): "Poverty research and its discontents: Review and Discussion of Issues Raised in Dimensions of Poverty. Measurement, Epistemic Injustices and Social Activism, (2020)", Review of Income and Wealth 67(2), 530-544. doi:

10.1111/roiw.12498.

Flechtner, S. (2020): "Winning the fight against global poverty one experiment at a time? The Economics Nobel 2019", ORDO – Jahrbuch für die Ordnung von Wirtschaft und Gesellschaft 70(1): 395-406.

Flechtner, S. & Gräbner, C. (2019): "The heterogeneous relationship between income and inequality: a panel co-integration approach", Economics Bulletin 39(4): 2540-2549.

We study the relationship between per-capita income and income inequality with a heterogeneous panel co-integration approach. We extend previous studies in two respects: first, we compile a more extensive data set for 87 countries over 26-58 years and consider measures for both pre-tax and post-tax income inequality; second, we take into account country heterogeneity rather than focussing on average panel estimates alone. We find a statistically significant positive group-mean based relationship using pre-tax income inequality, but no such relationship for post-tax income inequality. However, we find estimates on the country level to be very heterogeneous in both cases. Both empirical findings invite further research: by laying out relevant empirical patterns using a robust methodology, our contribution is meant as a vantage point for further theoretical work geared towards understanding the mechanisms underlying these findings.

Decker, S., Elsner, W. & Flechtner, S. (2019, eds): Principles and Pluralist Approaches in Teaching Economics: Towards a Transformative Science. Routledge Advances in Heterodox Economics. London: Routledge.   

Flechtner, S. (2019): "Entwicklung und Freiheit - Verhaltens-, sozio- und entwicklungsökonomische Perspektiven", in Katharina Hirschbrunn, Ulrich Klüh und Richard Sturn (eds), Jahrbuch Normative und institutionelle Grundfragen der Ökonomik, 17: Kapitalismus und Freiheit. Marburg: Metropolis.

Decker, S., Elsner, W. & Flechtner, S. (2018, eds): Advancing Pluralism in Teaching Economics: International Perspectives on a Textbook Science. Routledge Advances in Heterodox Economics. London: Routledge.

Flechtner, S. (2017): "Should aspirations be a matter of policy concern?", Journal of Human Development and Capabilities, 18(4): 517-530, doi: 10.1080/19452829.2017.1364224.

The literature dealing with aspiration traps indicates that a life of poverty, deprivation or exclusion may hinder people’s development of goals and aspirations that would best serve their interests. Many authors seem to suggest that governments, schools, development agencies or NGOs should develop policies to help individuals avoid aspirations which are too low. However, it is not yet fully clear how these policies need to be designed in order to increase people’s welfare. To bridge this gap, this paper compares two different welfare approaches and examines how useful these might be when looking at normative implications of policies regarding aspirations. Drawing on Sen’s capability approach, we conclude that policies addressing aspiration traps need to be accompanied with policies that address, more directly, poverty and material hardship. To alleviate poverty, it can be helpful to make people reconsider their aspirations; however, this can complement but not substitute other policies. Moreover, to ensure that policies that address aspirations are not detrimental to welfare, they should not push people towards specific choices.

Flechtner, S. (2017): "Individuelle Zielsetzungen – ein Ansatzpunkt zur Bekämpfung von Armut und Ungleichheiten?", Der Öffentliche Sektor - The Public Sector 43(2): 49-53.

Flechtner, S. (2017): "Growth Miracle or Endangered Development? Vested Interests, Policy-Making, and Economic Development in the Dominican Republic", Journal of Economic Issues 51(2): 323-331.

The Dominican Republic is often considered among the most successful developing countries, based primarily on its high and relatively sustained growth rates over the last two decades. On the other hand, indicators of human and social development, healthcare, and education have been particularly poor. I argue that the polarization of economic power plays an important role for this development. Furthermore, I analyze the structure of the Dominican economy in order to show that the country has relied on tourism, services, and special economic zones to obtain relatively high growth rates. These activities do not require high-skilled labor and will not allow the economy to generate high incomes for the population, but benefit a few families who control most conglomerates. In turn, this explains low investment in education and social spending, as well as low taxation rates.

Flechtner, S. (2017): "Inequality, (unmet) aspirations and social protest", in H. Hanappi & S. Katsikides (eds), Evolutionary Political Economy in Action. A Cyprus Symposium, Part 1: Political Economy in Action: 109-123. Abingdon/ New York: Routledge.

Flechtner, S. (2017): "Desigualdad y desenvolvimiento económico en la República Dominicana - Un análisis desde la perspectiva de la economía política", in A. Klump and C. Felbeck (eds), Dominicanidad: Perspectivas de un concepto transnacional: 169-203. Frankfurt am Main: Peter Lang.

Flechtner, S. (2016): Aspirations and the persistence of poverty and inequalities. Dissertation, Europa-Universität Flensburg.

Flechtner, S. & Panther, S. (2016): "Economic inequality, political power and political decision-making: the case of the 'middle-income trap'", in S. Fadda & P. Tridico (eds), Varieties of Economic Inequality: 72-94. Abingdon/ New York: Routledge.

Flechtner, S. (2014): "Aspiration Traps: When Poverty Stifles Hope", World Bank Inequality in Focus, 3(1),  January 2014.

OTHER WRITINGS

"Think Positive, Climb out of Poverty? It’s Just Not So Easy!" , blog post at developingeconomics.org, 9 August 2018.

"Poor Behavior, Good Behavioral Policies? Double Standards for the North and South", blog post at developingeconomics.org, 14 September 2017.

"Towards a Critical Pluralist Research Agenda in Development Economics: Some Bricks from Berlin to Build Upon", blog post at developingeconomics.org (jointly with Jakob Hafele and Theresa Neef), 13 July 2017.