Publications

2026

• Language Barriers and Healthcare Uptake. Causal Evidence From Immigrants in France
  
  • Nicolas Julia
  • Präg Patrick
  • Toma Sorana
  , 2025. Immigrants often arrive with better health than natives of their host country, a phenomenon known as the ‘healthy immigrant effect.’ This advantage diminishes over time, one reason being unequal healthcare access. Our study examines whether communication barriers contribute to these inequalities in a healthcare system that rarely accommodates an increasingly diverse and multilingual population. We expect that limited French proficiency restricts equitable access to care. Using the Trajectoires et Origines 2 survey conducted in 2019 in France among over 27,000 individuals---oversampling immigrant-origin populations---we investigate how language shapes healthcare use. France provides a relevant case, as immigrants come from diverse origins, including former colonies where French is an official language, generating substantial variation in proficiency. Findings show significant language-related disparities in medical visits, except for generalist practitioners. To address possible endogeneity bias in the relationship between language and healthcare uptake, we construct an instrument combining age at arrival in France and linguistic distance between French and the mother tongue. This method reveals a significant language effect only for visits to psychologists or psychiatrists. Theoretically, we propose a quantitative strategy to assess language barriers’ effects on immigrants’ healthcare access. Practically, we highlight the need for linguistically inclusive health services. (10.31235/osf.io/fg5ny_v1)
  DOI : 10.31235/osf.io/fg5ny_v1
• Machine-Learning Text Analysis of Intergenerational Mobility Perceptions in Germany, Sweden, and the United Kingdom
  
  • Gugushvili Alexi
  • Lennert Felix
  • Präg Patrick
  , 2025. Research on intergenerational mobility has traditionally focused on objective markers of socioeconomic position. In this study, we argue that the subjective aspects of intergenerational mobility deserve greater attention and empirically explore what individuals report they compare when they gauge their intergenerational mobility trajectories. Drawing on representative survey data from Germany, Sweden, and the United Kingdom, as well as machine-learning-driven text analyses of open-ended survey responses, we reveal that, in addition to conventional measures of intergenerational mobility, such as education, occupational status, and income, individuals consider a diverse array of factors, including family life, home ownership, and lifestyle choices. Our findings highlight the heterogeneity of these comparisons across different countries, genders, and generations. We identify significant variations in the dimensions of intergenerational comparisons, such as the prominence of education in Sweden, the focus on housing in the United Kingdom, and the salience of freedom, opportunity, and lifestyle in Germany. Furthermore, gender differences reveal that females are more likely to emphasize education and family life, while males focus on income and occupational status. These insights provide a deeper understanding of the subjective dimensions of intergenerational mobility and contribute to ongoing debates in social stratification research and general social theory. (10.31235/osf.io/892e5)
  DOI : 10.31235/osf.io/892e5
• Russia’s Invasion of Ukraine and Perceived Intergenerational Mobility in Czechia and Uruguay. An Unexpected Event During Survey Design Study
  
  • Hamjediers Maik
  • Präg Patrick
  • Gugushvili Alexi
  , 2025. Can large-scale geopolitical shocks causally reshape how individuals perceive their intergenerational mobility? We address this question by examining the immediate impact of Russia's invasion of Ukraine on mobility perceptions using a quasi-experimental design. Leveraging World Values Survey data collected in Czechia and Uruguay during the invasion, we implement a regression discontinuity design that compares respondents interviewed immediately before and after February 24, 2022. This unexpected event during survey design approach addresses key limitations of correlational studies by exploiting quasi-random variation in exposure to the shock. Across multiple specifications -- including bandwidth sensitivity analyses, logit models, demographic controls, and robust bias-corrected estimates -- we find consistent null effects. The invasion produced no discernible immediate impact on either upward or downward mobility perceptions in either country, despite Czechia's geographic proximity and historical ties to the region. These findings complement prior correlational evidence showing associations between war concerns and mobility beliefs one year after the invasion, suggesting that such effects may unfold gradually rather than instantaneously, or that correlational patterns reflect selection into worry rather than immediate causal impacts. Our study demonstrates the value of combining multiple methods and measures when studying how geopolitical crises shape social perceptions. (10.31235/osf.io/at32x_v1)
  DOI : 10.31235/osf.io/at32x_v1
• Cognitive ageing: sex and life course social class differences in England
  
  • Richards Lindsay
  • Maharani Asri
  • Präg Patrick
  Social Science & Medicine, Elsevier, 2026, 388, pp.118787. (10.1016/j.socscimed.2025.118787)
  DOI : 10.1016/j.socscimed.2025.118787
• Why should I comply with taxes if others don’t?: Social information and behavioral convergence: An experimental study
  
  • Etchart-Vincent Nathalie
  • Ratto Marisa
  • Taugourdeau Emmanuelle
  Journal of Behavioral and Experimental Economics, Elsevier Inc., 2026, 120, pp.102497. This experimental study investigates the impact of social information about others’ tax behavior on individuals’ subsequent tax decisions. Two types of social information are introduced: (i) the average income reported within the subject’s entire group, and (ii) the average income reported within a reference subgroup made of either peers or non-peers and chosen by the subject. Our results show that social information significantly affects subsequent tax decisions, with a change in reported income ranging from 15% to 30% of total income on average. Moreover, the influence of whole-group information on tax behavior appears to be stronger than that of chosen-group information. Quite strikingly, a majority of subjects show more interest in the tax behavior of non-peers than in that of peers. Finally, our data provide strong evidence of behavioral convergence towards the average tax behavior of others. (10.1016/j.socec.2025.102497)
  DOI : 10.1016/j.socec.2025.102497