Peter Arcidiacono

Peter Arcidiacono (born 1971) is an American economist and econometrician. He received his PhD from Wisconsin in 1999 and has taught at Duke University ever since. He became a fellow of the Econometric Society in 2018.[1]

Peter Arcidiacono
Born1971 (age 49–50)
NationalityUnited States
Alma materUniversity of Wisconsin–Madison, PhD (1999),
Willamette University, BS (1993)
Known forAffirmative action in Higher education, Structural estimation of dynamic discrete choice models, College major choice
Scientific career
FieldsMicroeconomics, Econometrics
InstitutionsDuke University
Doctoral advisorJohn Kennan
WebsitePersonal webpage

Arcidiacono is known for his research contributions to three fields: affirmative action in higher education, structural estimation of dynamic discrete choice models, and college major choice, having written survey papers on each topic.[2] [3] [4]

He has also published papers on peer effects, racial discrimination, the minimum wage, and marriage markets.[5]

Education and career

Peter S. Arcidiacono was born in Oregon in 1971. He graduated from Tigard High School in 1990, completed a B.S. in Economics in 1993 at Willamette University, and received his Ph.D. in Economics from the University of Wisconsin–Madison in 1999 under the supervision of John Kennan.

Arcidiacono has spent his entire academic career at Duke University (assistant professor, 1999–2006, associate professor, 2006–2010, and full professor, 2010–present).[6]

Research and contributions

Affirmative action in higher education

Arcidiacono's research on affirmative action in higher education has centered on the theme that there exists a trade-off between institutional quality and the fit between a school and a student.[7] Thus, students who are admitted under affirmative action may be made worse off due to lack of academic preparation.[8] [9]

Arcidiacono's expertise in this field led to his being hired as an expert witness in the Students for Fair Admissions v. Harvard and Students for Fair Admissions v. UNC lawsuits.

Dynamic discrete choice models
Further information: Dynamic discrete choice

Arcidiacono, along with Robert A. Miller and John Bailey Jones, is the co-developer of using the Expectation–maximization algorithm and conditional choice probabilities (CCPs) to simplify the maximum likelihood estimation of structural econometric models.[10][11] These methods allow a researcher to estimate the structural parameters of an economic model in stages because of additive separability in the objective function.[12] Additionally, CCPs allow the researcher to estimate the structural parameters without having to fully solve the agent's dynamic decision problem.[13] Both approaches result in substantial computational gains.

College major choice

Arcidiacono's work on college major choice has used dynamic discrete choice models to understand how much student decisions are driven by future labor market earnings versus other factors, such as academic ability, enjoyment of college coursework, or future occupational match.[14] He has also used elicited expectations models to answer similar questions.[15]

Professional service

Arcidiacono has served in several editorial positions since 2007:[16]

University admissions lawsuits

Along with Richard D. Kahlenberg, Arcidiacono was hired by Students for Fair Admissions (SFFA) to serve as an expert witness in the Students for Fair Admissions v. Harvard lawsuit, which was heard by Allison Dale Burroughs in Massachusetts federal district court in Boston in October 2018.[17] Harvard hired Ruth Simmons and David Card as its expert witnesses.[18]

Arcidiacono and Kahlenberg also served as expert witnesses for SFFA in the Students for Fair Admissions v. UNC lawsuit, with the defendants hiring Caroline Hoxby and Bridget Terry Long.[19][20] That lawsuit has yet to receive a trial date.[21]

Amicus briefs

On June 15, 2018, many documents surrounding the Harvard litigation (including the expert reports of Arcidiacono and Card) were publicly unsealed.[22] About six weeks later, a group of economists filed an amicus brief in support of Arcidiacono's findings in his expert witness report.[23] The economists involved were Michael Keane, Hanming Fang, Yingyao Hu, Glenn Loury, and Matthew Shum.[23] The brief argued that Arcidiacono's findings were correct and that Card's analysis was wrong for three reasons:[23]

  1. Harvard's personal rating scores are biased against Asian-Americans, and thus should not be included in the admissions model
  2. Interactions between race and disadvantaged status should be included in the admissions model
  3. Applicants in special recruiting categories (such as recruited athletes or legacies) should be excluded from the admissions model because they are not similarly situated to other applicants

One month following, another group of economists filed an amicus brief in support of Card's analysis, claiming that the points made in the original brief were either mistaken or not germane to the question of racial discrimination.[24] The brief also argued that Card's decision to not pool applicants across admissions cycles was correct. This group of economists consisted of Susan Dynarski, Harry J. Holzer, Hilary Hoynes, Guido Imbens, Alan B. Krueger, Helen F. Ladd, David S. Lee, Trevon D. Logan, Alexandre Mas, Michael McPherson, Jesse Rothstein, Cecilia Rouse, Robert M. Solow, Lowell J. Taylor, Sarah Turner, and Douglas Webber.[24] An amended brief was filed shortly thereafter which added George Akerlof and Janet Yellen to the list.[25]

Controversy

Arcidiacono's paper with Esteban Aucejo and Ken Spenner, entitled What happens after enrollment? An analysis of the time path of racial differences in GPA and major choice, analyzed data from Duke University and found that African American students switch out of more academically difficult majors at higher rates than their peers. However, the study found no gap in switching once adjusting for differences in academic background.[26][27] Members of the Duke University Black Student Alliance protested the paper.[28]

Personal life

Arcidiacono is a devout Catholic, husband, and father of five children.[29] He has publicly discussed issues of being a Christian in academia.[30]

Selected publications

Affirmative action in higher education
  • Arcidiacono, Peter; Lovenheim, Michael (2016). "Affirmative Action and the Quality-Fit Trade-Off". Journal of Economic Literature. 54 (1): 3–51. doi:10.1257/jel.54.1.3. S2CID 1876963.

Estimation of dynamic discrete choice models
  • Arcidiacono, Peter; Jones, John Bailey (2003). "Finite Mixture Distributions, Sequential Likelihood and the EM Algorithm". Econometrica. 71 (3): 933–946. doi:10.1111/1468-0262.00431. hdl:10161/1873.
  • Arcidiacono, Peter; Bayer, Patrick; Blevins, Jason R.; Ellickson, Paul B. (2016). "Estimation of Dynamic Discrete Choice Models in Continuous Time with an Application to Retail Competition". Review of Economic Studies. 83 (3): 889–931. doi:10.1093/restud/rdw012. S2CID 204400538.

College major choice
  • Arcidiacono, Peter (2004). "Ability sorting and the returns to college major". Journal of Econometrics. 121 (1–2): 343–375. doi:10.1016/j.jeconom.2003.10.010.
  • Arcidiacono, Peter; Hotz, V. Joseph; Kang, Songman (2012). "Modeling college major choices using elicited measures of expectations and counterfactuals". Journal of Econometrics. 166 (1): 3–16. doi:10.1016/j.jeconom.2011.06.002.

References
  1. "Fellows of the Econometric Society". Retrieved July 23, 2019.
  2. Arcidiacono, Peter; Lovenheim, Michael (2016). "Affirmative Action and the Quality-Fit Trade-Off". Journal of Economic Literature. 54 (1): 3–51. doi:10.1257/jel.54.1.3. S2CID 1876963.
  3. Arcidiacono, Peter; Ellickson, Paul B. (2011). "Practical Methods for Estimation of Dynamic Discrete Choice Models". Annual Review of Economics. 3 (1): 363–394. doi:10.1146/annurev-economics-111809-125038. S2CID 17631350.
  4. Altonji, Joseph G.; Arcidiacono, Peter; Maurel, Arnaud (2016). Handbook of the Economics of Education. 5. Elsevier. pp. 305–396. ISBN 9780444634597.
  5. "Online research papers by Peter Arcidiacono". Retrieved July 24, 2019.
  6. "Curriculum vitae" (PDF).
  7. Arcidiacono, Peter; Lovenheim, Michael (2016). "Affirmative Action and the Quality-Fit Trade-Off". Journal of Economic Literature. 54 (1): 3–51. doi:10.1257/jel.54.1.3. S2CID 1876963.
  8. Arcidiacono, Peter; Aucejo, Esteban M.; Fang, Hanming; Spenner, Kenneth I. (2011). "Does affirmative action lead to mismatch? A new test and evidence". Quantitative Economics. 2 (3): 303–333. doi:10.3982/QE83.
  9. Arcidiacono, Peter; Aucejo, Esteban M.; Spenner, Ken (2012). "What happens after enrollment? An analysis of the time path of racial differences in GPA and major choice". IZA Journal of Labor Economics. 1 (5): 5. doi:10.1186/2193-8997-1-5.
  10. "Citations of Arcidiacono and Jones (2003)". Retrieved July 24, 2019.
  11. "Citations of Arcidiacono and Miller (2011)". Retrieved July 24, 2019.
  12. "Citations of Arcidiacono and Jones (2003)". Retrieved July 24, 2019.
  13. "Citations of Arcidiacono and Miller (2011)". Retrieved July 24, 2019.
  14. Arcidiacono, Peter (2004). "Ability sorting and the returns to college major". Journal of Econometrics. 121 (1–2): 343–375. doi:10.1016/j.jeconom.2003.10.010.
  15. Arcidiacono, Peter; Hotz, V. Joseph; Kang, Songman (2012). "Modeling college major choices using elicited measures of expectations and counterfactuals". Journal of Econometrics. 166 (1): 3–16. doi:10.1016/j.jeconom.2011.06.002.
  16. "Curriculum vitae" (PDF).
  17. "Question at center of Harvard trial: What counts as discrimination?". Boston Globe. October 21, 2018.
  18. "Dueling Economists: Rival Analyses of Harvard's Admissions Process Emerge at Trial". Chronicle of Higher Education. October 30, 2018.
  19. "Admissions Case: Supporting Documents". Retrieved July 25, 2019.
  20. "SFFA Files Motion for Summary Judgment Against UNC". Retrieved July 25, 2019.
  21. "That Other Affirmative-Action Case: The Battle Over UNC's Admissions Policies Heats Up". Chronicle of Higher Education. January 18, 2019.
  22. "Students for Fair Admissions, Inc. v. President and Fellows of Harvard College et al". Retrieved July 26, 2019. June 15, 2018 ... Filing 421
  23. "Amicus Brief filed by Amici Curiae Economists Michael Keane et al., in Support of Students for Fair Admissions". Retrieved July 26, 2019.
  24. "Amicus Brief filed by Amici Curiae Economists Susan Dynarski et al., in Support of Harvard" (PDF). Retrieved July 26, 2019.
  25. "Amended Amicus Brief filed by Amici Curiae Economists Susan Dynarski et al., in Support of Harvard" (PDF). Retrieved July 26, 2019.
  26. Arcidiacono, Peter; Aucejo, Esteban M; Spenner, Ken (2012). "What happens after enrollment? An analysis of the time path of racial differences in GPA and major choice". IZA Journal of Labor Economics. Walter de Gruyter GmbH. 1 (1): 5. doi:10.1186/2193-8997-1-5. ISSN 2193-8997.
  27. "Not Catching Up: Affirmative Action at Duke University". Marginal Revolution. January 17, 2012.
  28. "Racial controversy at Duke challenges affirmative action". The College Fix. February 13, 2012.
  29. "Catholic Links".
  30. Pete Hynes (March 8, 2017). "#15: Being A Christian Witness In Academia". The Two or Three Podcast (Podcast). Retrieved July 25, 2019.
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