The joint study by Natalia Danzer, Sebastian Garcia-Torres, Max Steinhardt and Luca Stella on the relationship of women in political power on school closures during the Covid-19 pandemic has been accepted for publication in Economic Policy.

Abstract: This study explores the relationship between women's representation in political power and school closures during the COVID-19 pandemic. Using a cross-country dataset in Europe, we document a striking negative relationship between the share of female members in national governments and school closures. We show that a one standard deviation increase in female members of national governments is associated with a reduction in the likelihood of school lockdowns by 24% relative to the average share of school closures. This result is robust to an extensive set of sensitivity checks. We attribute this pattern to a higher awareness of female politicians about the potential costs that school closures imply for families.

Gender diversity in political responses to the pandemic

(press release from the 78th Economic Policy Panel Meeting in Madrid)