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SKOPE Research
The follow
projects are funded by SKOPE's third ESRC research programme
(2008-2013).
Polarisation and mobility in the UK
This
project looks at the implications
of a polarising labour market for occupational and wage mobility and skills policy. The
main research questions of this project are:
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What
does the polarisation hypothesis (Goos and Manning, 2007) mean for wage distributions and
earnings inequality?
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What happens
to the mobility of workers in routine occupations
as these jobs have declined?
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Does a declining middle reduce
progression opportunities for low-wage workers?
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What are the implications for skills policy
of an hourglass labour market?
The project has produced a number of research and conference papers (co-authored with Ken Mayhew). A report
for the Resolution Foundation
was published in March 2012.
Labour market segmentation
There
are clear parallels between polarisation and the older literature
on segmented labour markets. This has prompted an evaluation of
the typologies of work organisation commonly discussed in
this literature. The different ways that firms or occupations organise
work have implications for career mobility. We hope to expand
on existing typologies and incorporate new forms of
work organisation into our analysis of mobility
patterns.
Selected
papers:
Higher education in
recession
We look at the implications of the recession for
higher education. On one hand, higher education is seen by policymakers as
an engine for growth. On the other hand, austerity measures have
placed limits on the size of the sector. This leads to
two main questions:
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Should policy
be driven by the rate of return and the concept of
a graduate premium?
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Are
there currently inefficiencies in the production of
undergraduate degrees and the role of HE in facilitating entry into
the labour market?
Selected papers:
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Ten big questions for higher education, SKOPE
Issues Paper 31. Link
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UK higher education in recession, 2011, SKOPE
Issues Paper 24. Link
Other research
- Developing vocational excellence:
learning environments within work environments, forthcoming, SKOPE
research paper (with
Susan James
).
- Are degrees worth higher fees? Perceptions of
potential undergraduates on the financial benefits of entering higher
education, forthcoming, SKOPE research paper (with
Hubert Ertl
and Helen Carasso
). A draft Issues paper based on
this research is available
here.
- Attractiveness in European IVET:
what really matters?, 2012, report for Cedefop (with
RAND Europe)
Doctoral Research
My D.Phil thesis is entitled 'Myopia,
retirement planning and commitment mechanisms' (Supervisor:
Terry O'Shaughnessy). This comprised a number of themes.
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Myopia and retirement
planning: this chapter develops a model of saving and
retirement with myopic individuals. It emphasises the connection between
the two decisions in plans and realised outcomes, especially if a saving
commitment mechanism is introduced.
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The effect of myopia
and pension payouts of the retirement decision: this
chapter tests the theory developed in the first chapter using a
laboratory experiment. This experiment asked participants to return to
the lab on repeated occasions (simulating 'work') in exchange for a
small wage and a growing saving pot (received when they participant did
not return, or 'retired'). The experiment finds impulsive discounting is
a strong predictor of the difference between planned and actual
retirement. In contrast to existing approaches, it does not find that
lump-sum payments delay retirement.
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Rising wage profiles
and saving commitment: rising wage profiles may act as
saving commitment mechanisms. This paper develops a theory of myopic
individuals and models demand for such wage profiles. It contrast this
model with the existing literature which emphasises a preference for
rising consumption - the demand for rising wages is found in the absence
of such preferences.
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