Vinh Phan’s research interest lies in environmental, health, and public economics. His research focuses on generating credible evidence for public policy through identifying the effects of air pollution on cognitive and health outcomes, as well as measuring welfare changes arising from different public programmes.
Job market paper
Genetics and the Cognitive Costs of Air Pollution
Substantial reductions in air pollution across many high-income countries raise an important policy question: are there still meaningful benefits to reducing air pollution further? This paper examines one potential benefit: improved day-to-day cognitive performance. Linking UK Biobank cognitive assessments to pollution and weather data, I exploit thermal inversions that trap pollutants near the ground to study the immediate cognitive effects of ambient air pollution in the United Kingdom. The results point to a same-day cognitive cost of remaining pollution, with lower reasoning-test performance and negative estimates broadly robust across a wide range of specifications and exposure definitions. I find no clear evidence that a higher genetic propensity for educational attainment shields individuals from this response. The findings suggest that further reductions in air pollution could still deliver tangible benefits, even in countries that have already made substantial progress in improving air quality.
Link to paper (pdf)
CV
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References
- Prof. Hans van Kippersluis
- Dr. Teresa Marreiros Vago d’Uva
- Prof. Stephanie von Hinke
Contact
Email: v.phan@ese.eur.nl
Personal website: Vinh Phan