Jaakko Meriläinen
@jmerilainen.bsky.social
Associate Professor of Economics @ SSE | Mediocre political economist, aspiring trumpetist, winner of the 2011 International Kantele Competition, amateur oil painter, and Mateo and Mila's dad | Read more: https://sites.google.com/view/jaakkomerilainen/
📋 Original survey evidence: In a follow-up survey of treated and control individuals, we find suggestive evidence of lasting effects on beliefs and political views---consistent with the ideology embedded in the Pirkkala school experiment curriculum.
April 30, 2025 at 2:22 PM
📋 Original survey evidence: In a follow-up survey of treated and control individuals, we find suggestive evidence of lasting effects on beliefs and political views---consistent with the ideology embedded in the Pirkkala school experiment curriculum.
👷 Persistent changes in labor supply & occupational choice: They worked less months per year and were more likely to enter civic-minded, lower-paying occupations (e.g., teaching, nursing), and less likely to hold managerial roles.
April 30, 2025 at 2:22 PM
👷 Persistent changes in labor supply & occupational choice: They worked less months per year and were more likely to enter civic-minded, lower-paying occupations (e.g., teaching, nursing), and less likely to hold managerial roles.
Our findings:
📉 Lower adult incomes: Exposed students earned about 10% less in adulthood; an effect comparable to the return to an additional year of schooling.
📉 Lower adult incomes: Exposed students earned about 10% less in adulthood; an effect comparable to the return to an additional year of schooling.
April 30, 2025 at 2:22 PM
Our findings:
📉 Lower adult incomes: Exposed students earned about 10% less in adulthood; an effect comparable to the return to an additional year of schooling.
📉 Lower adult incomes: Exposed students earned about 10% less in adulthood; an effect comparable to the return to an additional year of schooling.
The aim? To study the formation of a “functioning [socialist] worldview.”
What became of the children who were exposed?
We use full-population Finnish register data and a difference-in-differences design to study the long-run consequences of this episode of ideological education.
What became of the children who were exposed?
We use full-population Finnish register data and a difference-in-differences design to study the long-run consequences of this episode of ideological education.
April 30, 2025 at 2:22 PM
The aim? To study the formation of a “functioning [socialist] worldview.”
What became of the children who were exposed?
We use full-population Finnish register data and a difference-in-differences design to study the long-run consequences of this episode of ideological education.
What became of the children who were exposed?
We use full-population Finnish register data and a difference-in-differences design to study the long-run consequences of this episode of ideological education.
In 1970s Finland, a group of educational psychologists launched an experiment: two cohorts of fifth graders in the town of Pirkkala were taught a history and social studies curriculum shaped by Marxist-Leninist ideology. Other children in the country followed the standard/non-ideological curriculum.
April 30, 2025 at 2:22 PM
In 1970s Finland, a group of educational psychologists launched an experiment: two cohorts of fifth graders in the town of Pirkkala were taught a history and social studies curriculum shaped by Marxist-Leninist ideology. Other children in the country followed the standard/non-ideological curriculum.
🎓 New working paper: "Communism in the Classroom: Long-Run Effects of an Experiment" (with Matti Mitrunen)
![This paper investigates the individual-level economic impacts of Marxist-Leninist indoctrination. We examine the long-run effects of a rogue educational experiment that, between 1973 and 1975, exposed two cohorts of fifth graders in one Finnish municipality to a history and social studies curriculum influenced by Soviet ideas. The experiment aimed to study the formation of a ``functioning [socialist] worldview.'' Students in other cohorts and municipalities followed the standard curriculum. Using comprehensive register data and a difference-in-differences approach, we show that exposed students earned significantly less in adulthood than their non-exposed peers. This gap is partly explained by reduced labor supply and a shift toward more left-leaning, lower-paying occupations. We find no substantial effects on educational attainment, cognitive ability, or personality traits related to achievement striving. These findings highlight the long-lasting economic consequences of early exposure to ideological content in the classroom.](https://cdn.bsky.app/img/feed_thumbnail/plain/did:plc:iw4zik7u5zligtxo5zkry7ie/bafkreia3fludtx33qqjgyvqy4o72637jqj5xuqlpuds23fr2irlggcxrvi@jpeg)
April 30, 2025 at 2:22 PM
🎓 New working paper: "Communism in the Classroom: Long-Run Effects of an Experiment" (with Matti Mitrunen)
Puolue-kuntatason aineisto näyttää, että lyhyillä listoilla tuomioita on enemmän ehdokkaita kohti - pitkillä listoilla on todennäköisemmin vähintään yksi tuomittu ehdokas.
Kuvioissa on lohkottu hajontakuvio, jossa aineisto on keskiarvotettu 20 lohkon sisällä, sekä lineaarinen sovite.
Kuvioissa on lohkottu hajontakuvio, jossa aineisto on keskiarvotettu 20 lohkon sisällä, sekä lineaarinen sovite.
April 3, 2025 at 7:11 AM
Puolue-kuntatason aineisto näyttää, että lyhyillä listoilla tuomioita on enemmän ehdokkaita kohti - pitkillä listoilla on todennäköisemmin vähintään yksi tuomittu ehdokas.
Kuvioissa on lohkottu hajontakuvio, jossa aineisto on keskiarvotettu 20 lohkon sisällä, sekä lineaarinen sovite.
Kuvioissa on lohkottu hajontakuvio, jossa aineisto on keskiarvotettu 20 lohkon sisällä, sekä lineaarinen sovite.
Tässä pari kuvaa rikoksesta tuomittujen osuuksista puolueittain, sekä vastaavanlaiset kuvat kolmelle yleisimmälle kunnallisvaaliehdokkaiden tekemälle rikokselle (törkeä rattijuopumus, törkeä liikenneturvallisuuden vaarantaminen ja pahoinpitely).
April 2, 2025 at 1:51 PM
Tässä pari kuvaa rikoksesta tuomittujen osuuksista puolueittain, sekä vastaavanlaiset kuvat kolmelle yleisimmälle kunnallisvaaliehdokkaiden tekemälle rikokselle (törkeä rattijuopumus, törkeä liikenneturvallisuuden vaarantaminen ja pahoinpitely).
Kuntatyöntekijöiden ehdokkuus esillä mediassa, tällä kertaa johtavassa asemassa olevien työntekijöiden osalta: yle.fi/a/74-20149607.
Tarkastelimme vuonna 2018 American Political Science Review -lehdessä julkaistussa tutkimuksessa kuntatyöntekijöiden edustuksen vaikutuksia.
Tarkastelimme vuonna 2018 American Political Science Review -lehdessä julkaistussa tutkimuksessa kuntatyöntekijöiden edustuksen vaikutuksia.
March 19, 2025 at 8:39 AM
Kuntatyöntekijöiden ehdokkuus esillä mediassa, tällä kertaa johtavassa asemassa olevien työntekijöiden osalta: yle.fi/a/74-20149607.
Tarkastelimme vuonna 2018 American Political Science Review -lehdessä julkaistussa tutkimuksessa kuntatyöntekijöiden edustuksen vaikutuksia.
Tarkastelimme vuonna 2018 American Political Science Review -lehdessä julkaistussa tutkimuksessa kuntatyöntekijöiden edustuksen vaikutuksia.
Back to Stockholm after a quick visit to Turku—and what could have been better than presenting new work with Matti and Teppo, namesakes of two local music icons.
March 6, 2025 at 2:32 PM
Back to Stockholm after a quick visit to Turku—and what could have been better than presenting new work with Matti and Teppo, namesakes of two local music icons.
Poliitikot saavat keskimääräistä korkeampia pisteitä:
🔹 Kognitiiviset kyvyt (erityisesti verbaalinen ja matemaattinen päättely)
🔹 Ei-kognitiiviset kyvyt (erityisesti johtajuusmotivaatio, sosiaalisuus, päämäärätietoisuus ja rehellisyys)
🔹 Kognitiiviset kyvyt (erityisesti verbaalinen ja matemaattinen päättely)
🔹 Ei-kognitiiviset kyvyt (erityisesti johtajuusmotivaatio, sosiaalisuus, päämäärätietoisuus ja rehellisyys)
February 25, 2025 at 12:26 PM
Poliitikot saavat keskimääräistä korkeampia pisteitä:
🔹 Kognitiiviset kyvyt (erityisesti verbaalinen ja matemaattinen päättely)
🔹 Ei-kognitiiviset kyvyt (erityisesti johtajuusmotivaatio, sosiaalisuus, päämäärätietoisuus ja rehellisyys)
🔹 Kognitiiviset kyvyt (erityisesti verbaalinen ja matemaattinen päättely)
🔹 Ei-kognitiiviset kyvyt (erityisesti johtajuusmotivaatio, sosiaalisuus, päämäärätietoisuus ja rehellisyys)
✅ Politicians have higher-than-average:
🔹 Cognitive ability (especially verbal and arithmetic reasoning)
🔹 Non-cognitive ability (especially leadership motivation, sociability, achievement striving, and dutifulness/honesty)
🔹 Cognitive ability (especially verbal and arithmetic reasoning)
🔹 Non-cognitive ability (especially leadership motivation, sociability, achievement striving, and dutifulness/honesty)
February 25, 2025 at 12:22 PM
✅ Politicians have higher-than-average:
🔹 Cognitive ability (especially verbal and arithmetic reasoning)
🔹 Non-cognitive ability (especially leadership motivation, sociability, achievement striving, and dutifulness/honesty)
🔹 Cognitive ability (especially verbal and arithmetic reasoning)
🔹 Non-cognitive ability (especially leadership motivation, sociability, achievement striving, and dutifulness/honesty)
Job market candidates waiting for their turn to be interviewed (photo from ASSA 2019)
January 5, 2025 at 3:11 PM
Job market candidates waiting for their turn to be interviewed (photo from ASSA 2019)
Latest addition to my collection of cool instruments I can’t play but try to learn — a cuatro puertorriqueño.
December 25, 2024 at 5:36 PM
Latest addition to my collection of cool instruments I can’t play but try to learn — a cuatro puertorriqueño.
What an honor (and a surprise!) to receive the 2024 SSE Corporate Partners' Research Award!
December 17, 2024 at 9:07 AM
What an honor (and a surprise!) to receive the 2024 SSE Corporate Partners' Research Award!
A revised version below. Data merging and plotting still done by ChatGPT, so should be treated with caution.
December 14, 2024 at 8:04 AM
A revised version below. Data merging and plotting still done by ChatGPT, so should be treated with caution.
And here comes a new version of the first graph. Still by ChatGPT, so take with a grain of salt :) (I should probably get back to work now...)
December 13, 2024 at 2:16 PM
And here comes a new version of the first graph. Still by ChatGPT, so take with a grain of salt :) (I should probably get back to work now...)
Here is another attempt with all the countries available in WVS and the World Happiness Report. Could still be wrong -- I was lazy and used ChatGPT to merge the data and plot the graph.
December 13, 2024 at 2:01 PM
Here is another attempt with all the countries available in WVS and the World Happiness Report. Could still be wrong -- I was lazy and used ChatGPT to merge the data and plot the graph.
A quick scatter plot with the cross-country correlation between happiness scores and % of people who think one of their main goals in life is to make their parents proud brought to you by ChatGPT (= not sure if this is correct, but I want to believe in this correlation... :)).
December 13, 2024 at 1:27 PM
A quick scatter plot with the cross-country correlation between happiness scores and % of people who think one of their main goals in life is to make their parents proud brought to you by ChatGPT (= not sure if this is correct, but I want to believe in this correlation... :)).
The real reason Finland is the happiest country in the world isn't the sauna (www.economist.com/europe/2024/...); it's this:
December 13, 2024 at 12:22 PM
The real reason Finland is the happiest country in the world isn't the sauna (www.economist.com/europe/2024/...); it's this:
Nobel laureates Johnson and Robinson visiting SSE—a wonderful event concluded with a beautiful performance of economics students’ choir.
December 12, 2024 at 3:02 PM
Nobel laureates Johnson and Robinson visiting SSE—a wonderful event concluded with a beautiful performance of economics students’ choir.
I started the teaching period with two whiteboard markers. I now have 18. 😬
At least I’ve managed not to (accidentally) steal any erasers from the lecture halls this year…
At least I’ve managed not to (accidentally) steal any erasers from the lecture halls this year…
November 28, 2024 at 8:43 AM
I started the teaching period with two whiteboard markers. I now have 18. 😬
At least I’ve managed not to (accidentally) steal any erasers from the lecture halls this year…
At least I’ve managed not to (accidentally) steal any erasers from the lecture halls this year…
Happening on that other social media platform... "We have decided that SSE will no longer use X as a way of sharing news from the School. [...] it no longer serves the purpose it once did."
November 25, 2024 at 9:00 AM
Happening on that other social media platform... "We have decided that SSE will no longer use X as a way of sharing news from the School. [...] it no longer serves the purpose it once did."
For those who are not yet tired of hearing about problems associated with DID: My friend Mitch Downey @iies.su.se has an interesting new paper on unit-specific trends in TWFE specifications.
Link: drive.google.com/file/d/1-Vhs...
Link: drive.google.com/file/d/1-Vhs...
September 19, 2024 at 8:45 AM
For those who are not yet tired of hearing about problems associated with DID: My friend Mitch Downey @iies.su.se has an interesting new paper on unit-specific trends in TWFE specifications.
Link: drive.google.com/file/d/1-Vhs...
Link: drive.google.com/file/d/1-Vhs...