Se non ce la fai, è colpa tua? Meritocrazia, povertà e paura

substack.com/@valentinaro...

If you read it and have thoughts, critiques, or suggestions for sharpening the argument (or positioning it), I’d be very glad to hear from you.

What matters, economically and politically, is not how little vulnerability societies face, but how they organize it. I’m sharing this as a working paper because I genuinely welcome feedback — conceptual, theoretical, or strategic.

This paper brings together a line of thinking I’ve been working on for a long time: vulnerability is not a residual problem to be minimized, but a foundational condition of economic and social life.

Vulnerability (not autonomy) is the baseline of economic and social functioning.

I’ve just released a new working paper on SocArXiv / OSF:

👉 osf.io/preprints/so...

The Working Paper: osf.io/preprints/so...
#wellbeing #parenting #schools #carework #gendergaps #ESSdata #summerrest

If you’re curious whether school calendars support or strain parental well-being, this paper offers some insights—and maybe a reason to rethink how we structure time and care.
Back on August 22—with more rest, more thoughts, and probably a very full inbox.

The findings: childless men consistently report higher happiness, while mothers—especially in countries with longer school closures—see little to no summer boost. Fathers show a more complex pattern, and childless women respond in ways that are highly context-dependent.

If you're still online and wondering whether summer breaks are truly restorative for everyone, here’s a new working paper that might interest you. It explores how the timing of interviews relative to school holidays affects reported happiness across European adults.

Prendersi cura ci cambia e può cambiare l’economia | Valentina Rotondi | TEDxSaronno YouTube video by TEDx Talks

Care is a silent and constant form of work—one that goes deep, all the way under the skin. It transforms us, but only when it is socially supported and fairly shared among those who provide it.
Care makes us more vulnerable, but also more empathic. My talk is now on YouTube: youtu.be/HRw93Oyrezk?...

Access to technology and foundational math proficiency among students: empirical evidence from India - Humanities and Social Sciences Communications Humanities and Social Sciences Communications - Access to technology and foundational math proficiency among students: empirical evidence from India

Access to technology and foundational math proficiency among students: empirical evidence from India
doi.org/10.1057/s415...
Paper in @nature.com by Prashant Poddar, @rotondivale.bsky.social and @nuffieldcollege.bsky.social Fellow @ridhikashyap.bsky.social

Just gave my TEDx talk, and I’m still filled with gratitude. From parenting to public policy, from neuroscience to labor markets, I shared research and stories that show how caring changes us—and how it could change the way we design our economies.

#TEDx #CareEconomy

See you next Monday! Thanks @sironimaria.bsky.social for the invitation

How is trust in female scientists shaped across culture and generations?

Tomorrow at @univdauphine.bsky.social, I’ll be presenting the results of some recent research conducted with @lucampesando.bsky.social, drawing on evidence from five countries. Looking forward to the discussion!

PAA and the Association of Population Centers express alarm about recent events in which federal agencies have been purging scientific and statistical data from publicly available portals and websites. Read our full statement: www.populationassociation.org/blogs/paa-we...

📢 Job: Sabino Kornrich and I are hiring a 3-year Postdoc to join us at #NYUAD to work on parenting, childhood inequalities, and parenting norms in international and comparative perspective using experimental methods. Deadline to apply: February 14, 2025. To apply: apply.interfolio.com/160976

How much do people around the world trust scientists?

"Most people have a relatively high trust in scientists. People want scientists to take an active role in society and policymaking."

www.nature.com/articles/s41...

Reinstating policies to restrict support for womens health around the world between 2017 and 2021 (the last Trump presidency) resulted in approximately 108,000 maternal and child deaths and 360,000 new HIV infections.
www.pnas.org/doi/10.1073/...