Local elected officials' receptivity to refugee resettlement in the United States.

Local leaders possess significant and growing authority over refugee resettlement, yet we know little about their attitudes toward refugees. In this article, we use a conjoint experiment to evaluate how the attributes of hypothetical refugee groups influence local policymaker receptivity toward refugee resettlement. We sample from a national panel of current local elected officials, who represent a broad range of urban and rural communities across the United States. We find that many local officials favor refugee resettlement, regardless of refugee attributes. However, officials are most receptive to refugees whom they perceive as a strong economic and social fit within their communities. Our study contributes to a growing literature on individual attitudes toward refugees by systematically examining the preferences of US local elected officials and offers unique insights into the views of this influential and policy-relevant group.

The effect of images of Michelle Obama's face on trick-or-treaters' dietary choices: A randomized control trial.

OBJECTIVE: To evaluate the microfoundations of a personality-inspired public health campaign's influence on minors. DESIGN: Multi-year randomized control trial. SETTING: Economics professor's front porch in New Haven, CT. PARTICIPANTS: 1223 trick-or-treaters in New Haven over three years; on average, 8.5 years old and 53% male (among children whose gender was identifiable). ELIGIBILITY: Trick-or-treaters over the age of three that approached the house. INTERVENTION: Random assignment to the Michelle Obama side of the porch or the Comparison side of the porch. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURE: Selection of fruit over candy. METHODS: Difference-in-means estimates. RESULTS: We estimate that viewing a photograph of Michelle Obama's face relative to control conditions caused children to be 19% more likely to choose fruit over candy. CONCLUSIONS: Michelle Obama's initiative to reduce childhood obesity has influenced children's dietary preferences. Whether this influence extends beyond Halloween trick-or-treating in New Haven, CT on the porch of an economics professor requires further research.