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Jeffrey DeSimone

Professor of the Practice of Economics
Economics
419 Chapel Drive, Box 90097, Durham, NC 27708
419 Chapel Drive, Durham, NC 27708

Overview


Jeff joined Duke Economics in July 2022 as the inaugural director of the DEAL. His lab research studies impacts of the minimum legal drinking age on potential socially harmful outcomes of alcohol consumption, causes and consequences of mass/school shootings and gun prevalence, how disease severity influences subsequent vaccination behavior, weekly suicide cycles, the Texas Winter Storm (of 2021, not 2023), optimal near-goalline positioning in football, and racial bias in MLB Hall of Fame voting. He teaches the core econometrics course for majors along with a class on gun violence research for undergradate/master's students, and also serves as a Trinity College advisor.

Current Appointments & Affiliations


Professor of the Practice of Economics · 2022 - Present Economics, Trinity College of Arts & Sciences
Director of the Duke Economic Analytics Lab of Economics · 2022 - Present Economics, Trinity College of Arts & Sciences

In the News


Published October 29, 2022
Economics' New Faculty Take a Multifaceted Look at Real-World Problems

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Recent Publications


REGRESSION DISCONTINUITY EVIDENCE ON THE EFFECTIVENESS OF THE MINIMUM LEGAL E-CIGARETTE PURCHASING AGE

Journal Article American Journal of Health Economics · June 1, 2023 Increases in youth vaping rates and concerns of a new generation of nicotine addicts re-cently prompted an increase in the federal minimum legal purchase age (MLPA) for tobacco products, including e-cigarettes, to 21 years. This study presents the first re ... Full text Cite

SUICIDE AND THE SOCIAL SECURITY EARLY RETIREMENT AGE

Journal Article Contemporary Economic Policy · July 2018 Using a regression discontinuity framework, this paper documents a previously unnoticed drop of 7%–8% in the U.S. suicide rate upon reaching age 62 during 1990–2014. This decline is concentrated among men, nearly doubled in size over the most recen ... Full text Cite

Child Access Prevention Laws and Nonfatal Gun Injuries

Journal Article Southern Economic Journal · July 2013 Many states have passed child access prevention (CAP) laws, which hold the gun owner responsible if a child gains access to a gun that is not securely stored. Previous research on CAP laws has focused exclusively on gun‐related deaths even though m ... Full text Cite
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Education, Training & Certifications


Yale University · 1998 Ph.D.