I am a Visiting Assistant Professor in Economics at Indiana University. Previously, I was an Assistant Professor in Economics at Peking University. My research spans econometrics, applied econometrics, machine learning in economics, intergenerational mobility and inequality, and development.
I have worked on functional data analysis in both cross-sectional and time series settings, contributing to the literature both theoretically and empirically. My research extends traditional econometric tools to infinite-dimensional objects such as income trajectories, stock return distributions, and yield curves, enabling richer modeling of dynamic and structural relationships in economic data.
I am interested in development issues from both micro and macro perspectives. My work includes a global study documenting how national development banks complement commercial banks in providing long-term finance, and an analysis of China’s state-owned enterprise reforms that reveals how policy burdens and distorted incentives shape reform outcomes.
I also study intergenerational mobility and inequality, focusing on how family, environment, and policy shape economic opportunities across generations. My projects examine cross-sectional heterogeneity, such as how mobility patterns vary by race, parental education, and other characteristics, and temporal heterogeneity, such as how the timing of parental income and family structure over the childhood life cycle influences long-term outcomes. These studies combine nonparametric, functional data, and machine-learning methods to uncover complex mechanisms behind persistent inequality.
My work has appeared in leading journals such as Sociological Methods & Research and World Development.