Shing-Yi Wang

• Shing-Yi Wang, Jing Cai, Sai Luo (Working), Money or Monitoring: Evidence on Improving Worker Effort. Abstract

  Higher compensation and increased monitoring are two common strategies for addressing the moral hazard problem between firms and workers. In a field experiment with new hires at an automobile manufacturing firm in China, we randomly varied both signing bonuses and monitoring intensity. Both interventions increased worker output but through different channels: signing bonuses led to longer working hours without significant gains in performance, while enhanced monitoring improved performance as evaluated by managers. Additionally, bonuses reduced quit rates, whereas monitoring raised them. These results suggest that firms should carefully consider their primary objectives and weigh these tradeoffs when designing optimal labor contracts.

• Shing-Yi Wang (2023), The Labor Supply Consequences of Having a Boy in China, World Bank Economic Review.
• Suresh Naidu, Yaw Nyarko, Shing-Yi Wang (Working), The Benefits and Costs of Guest Worker Programs: Experimental Evidence from the India-UAE Migration Corridor.
• Jing Cai and Shing-Yi Wang (2022), Improving Management through Worker Evaluations: Evidence from Auto Manufacturing, Quarterly Journal of Economics.
• A.V. Chari, Elaine M. Liu, Shing-Yi Wang, Yongxiang Wang (2021), Property Rights, Land Misallocation and Agricultural Efficiency in China, Review of Economic Studies.
• Erica M. Field, Leigh L. Linden, Ofer Malamud, Daniel Rubenson, Shing-Yi Wang, Does Vocational Education Work? Evidence from a Randomized Experiment in Mongolia.
• Yaw Nyarko, Thomas Joseph, Shing-Yi Wang (2018), Asymmetric Information and Remittances: Evidence from Matched Administrative Data, American Economic Journal: Applied Economics.
• Rema Hanna and Shing-Yi Wang (2017), Dishonesty and Selection into Public Service: Evidence from India, American Economic Journal: Economic Policy, 9 (3), pp. 262-290.
• Suresh Naidu, Yaw Nyarko, Shing-Yi Wang (2016), Monopsony Power in Migrant Labor Markets: Evidence from the United Arab Emirates, Journal of Political Economy.
• Cynthia Kinnan, Shing-Yi Wang, Yongxiang Wang (2015), Access to Migration for Rural Households, American Economic Journal: Applied Economics, forthcoming (). Abstract

  There are an estimated 750 million internal migrants in the world, yet the effects of access to internal migration for rural households are not well understood. Internal migrants may provide wealth transfers, insurance or credit to households remaining in rural areas. This paper exploits two unique features of China’s history to study the impact of relaxing migration constraints on the outcomes and choices of agricultural households: reforms to the household registration (hukou) system that relaxed restrictions on migration, and historical, centrally-planned migration flows. We show that historical flows of temporary migration due to a government policy called the “sentdown youth” (SDY) program created lasting inter-province links, so that decades later, reforms to the hukou system in cities which sent SDY increased migration in provinces where those SDY were sent. Using this variation, we find that improved access to migration leads to higher levels of consumption and lower consumption volatility for rural households. Furthermore, household production decisions change, with a shift into high-risk, high-return activities including animal husbandry and fruit farming.

• All Research from Shing-Yi Wang »

Past Courses

• BEPP2030 - Bus in Global Pol Envir

  This course examines the non-market components of business and the broader political, regulatory, and civil context in which companies function. This course addresses how businesses interact with political and regulatory institutions, as well as the general public, with a focus on the global economy. The first portion examines the realities associated with political economy and the actual making of laws and regulations by imperfect politicians and regulators. The second portion analyzes the economic rationale for legislation and regulation in the presence of market failures. The course covers specific market failures and potential solutions including government regulation.

• BEPP2330 - Consumers,Firms & Market

  Nearly four-fifths of the world's population lives in low income or developing countries. Though currently far behind the U.S., the 15 fastest growing economies/markets in the world are all developing countries. And developing countries already account for 6 of the world's 15 largest economies. This course will examine economic life, including consumers, firms and markets, in low income countries. We will apply both economic theory and empirical analysis for analyzing the roles of both business and government in consumption, production and market equilibria.

• BEPP2990 - Independent Study

• BEPP9000 - Research Seminar

  Of the many ways that doctoral students typically learn how to do research, two that are important are watching others give seminar presentations (as in Applied Economics Seminars) and presenting one's own research. The BEPP 9000 course provides a venue for the latter. Wharton doctoral students enrolled in this course present applied economics research. Presentations both of papers assigned for other classes and of research leading toward a dissertation are appropriate in BEPP 9000. This course aims to help students further develop a hands-on understanding of the research process. All doctoral students with applied microeconomic interests are encouraged to attend and present. Second and third year Applied Economic Ph.D. students are required to enroll in BEPP 9000 and receive one-semester credit per year of participation.

• BEPP9410 - Development Economics

  This course will cover current microeconomic issues of developikng countries including poverty, risk, savings, human capital, and institutions. We will also explore the causes and consequences of market failures that are common in many developing countries with a focus on credit, land, and labor markets. The course is designed to introduce recent research with focus on empirical methods and testing theories with data.

• Firms & Trade Improving management through worker feedback: Auto-manufacturing in China, VoxDev - 10/23/2020
• Internal migration improves economic security in rural China, VoxDev - 10/15/2018
• Do dishonest people gravitate towards the public sector in India?, Ideas for India - 07/30/2018
• Land rights and agricultural efficiency, VoxDev - 01/22/2018
• Rural Property Rights and Agricultural Productivity, VoxChina - 01/17/2018
• In pursuit of power, The Hindu - 08/15/2017
• Jobless Indian workers in UAE unlikely to return due to kafala system, International Business Times - 09/11/2016
• Open doors but different laws, Economist - 09/10/2016
• UAE labour mobility reforms create winners and losers, The National - 08/20/2016
• Wages of chagrin, Economist - 04/09/2016
• Government jobs in India attract corrupt youngsters like a magnet: Study, Times of India - 11/20/2013
• College kids who cheat are more likely to want government jobs, Houston Chronicle - 11/20/2013
• College Kids That Cheat Are More Likely To Want Government Jobs, Business Insider - 11/20/2013
• Does Government Work Attract Cheaters?, Bloomberg - 11/20/2013
• Cheats want government jobs, research finds, The Telegraph - 11/19/2013
• Cheating students 'more likely to want a job in Government', The Independent - 11/19/2013
• Cheating Students More Likely to Want Government Jobs, Says Study, Sunshine State News - 11/19/2013
• Cheating students more likely to want government jobs, study finds, LA Times - 11/18/2013
• How a Jump in Home Ownership Boosted Entrepreneurship in China, Knowlege@Wharton - 11/12/2013

Knowledge @ Wharton

• Markets Brace for Tariffs and Look to AI for Relief, Knowledge @ Wharton - 06/27/2025
• The New Science of Pitching and Hitting With Travis Sawchik, Knowledge @ Wharton - 06/25/2025
• How AI Is Reshaping Customer Experience and Expectations, Knowledge @ Wharton - 06/25/2025
• How Private Equity Firms Are Coping With Tariffs, Knowledge @ Wharton - 06/24/2025
• The AI Efficiency Trap: When Productivity Tools Create Perpetual Pressure, Knowledge @ Wharton - 06/24/2025
• What’s the Best Strategy to Grow Your Business?, Knowledge @ Wharton - 06/24/2025
• Private Finance, Public Power | Peter Conti-Brown, Knowledge @ Wharton - 06/24/2025
• How Tariffs Are Disrupting Retail and Consumer Confidence, Knowledge @ Wharton - 06/20/2025
• Recapping the U.S. Open With Daniel Rapaport, Knowledge @ Wharton - 06/18/2025
• From Amateurism to Paychecks: College Athletics in Transition, Knowledge @ Wharton - 06/18/2025