Welcome to RAND Labor and Population
RAND Labor and Population has built a national and international reputation for conducting high-quality, empirical research to support and improve policies and organizations around the world.
Our work has focused on labor markets, social welfare policy, demographic behavior, aging issues, retirement, and international development with the common aim toward understanding why people make the decisions they do and how markets, society, and policy affect them.
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Findings and News
James P. Smith Wins 2009 Ulysses Medal from University College Dublin — Oct. 22, 2009
James P. Smith, Senior Economist and RAND Chair in Labor Markets and Demographic Studies, received the 2009 Ulysses Medal from University College Dublin, an award given to "individuals whose work has made an outstanding global contribution."
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U.S.-U.K. Conference on Behavioral Finance and Public Policy — Jul. 30, 2009
The U.S.-U.K. Conference on Behavioral Finance and Public Policy held on May 1, 2009, highlighted new ideas that will help consumers make better financial decisions and achieve better outcomes.
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U.S. Households Are Coping with the Economic Downturn by Helping Each Other Financially — Jun. 5, 2009
One way that U.S. households are coping with the global economic downturn is by reaching out to each other via financial help. Also, many more households are giving financial help than receiving it, with help most frequently flowing from parents to children.
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News Archive
Featured Projects
Center for Financial and Economic Decision Making Studies Human Behavior — Feb. 20, 2009
Ongoing research at the Center for Financial and Economic Decision Making (CFED) addresses the process of financial decision making over the life-cycle, in particular assessing how people collect information; how they think about risks, and probabilities; and how well they match their decisions to their preferences and interests.
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Diversity Management Project Will Collect Data to Better Assess Workforce Policy — Oct. 13, 2008
A new RAND Labor and Population Project will examine how best to achieve and harness workplace diversity, a growing priority for U.S. companies and government agencies who want their workforces to reflect the evolving racial, ethnic, socio-economic, and generational makeup of American society and meet the challenges of the global market place.
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Workforce and Workplace Research Area
Featured Research
Consumer Use of Banks and Credit Unions: Findings from a Survey for the California and Nevada Credit Union Leagues — 2009
Jinkook Lee, Teryn Mattox, Kyoung-Nan Kwon, Arie Kapteyn, Tania Gutsche
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Helping Each Other in Times of Need: Financial Help as a Means of Coping with the Economic Crisis — 2009
Susann Rohwedder
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Preschool Adequacy and Efficiency in California: Issues, Policy Options, and Recommendations — 2009
Lynn A. Karoly
Full Document
Research Brief
The Economics of Early Childhood Policy: What the Dismal Science Has to Say About Investing in Children — 2008
M. Rebecca Kilburn, Lynn A. Karoly
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Evaluating the Spirituality for Kids After-School Program — 2008
Nicole Maestas, Sarah Gaillot
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Managing Diversity in Corporate America: An Exploratory Analysis — 2008
Jefferson P. Marquis, Nelson Lim, Lynn M. Scott, Margaret C. Harrell, Jennifer Kavanagh
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Room for Improvement in the Use of High-Quality Preschool Programs for California's Children — 2008
Lynn A. Karoly, Bonnie Ghosh-Dastidar, Gail L. Zellman, Michal Perlman, Lynda Fernyhough
Research Brief
What Does Economics Tell Us About Early Childhood Policy? — 2008
M. Rebecca Kilburn, Lynn A. Karoly
Research Brief