From the Ivory Tower to Capitol Hill: Which Academics Get a Voice in Congress?
Seminar in presence
Astrid Ulv Thomsen
Copenhagen Business School, Denmark
Abstract:
Examining academics’ engagement with public policymakers, this paper investigates the impact of technological changes on the composition of expert witnesses, in the context of testimony before the U.S. Congress. Utilizing a COVID-19 related policy change in Congress, the authors show that technological tools reducing the opportunity costs for certain demographic groups changed the composition of witnesses significantly. The paper documents that female economists have historically been underrepresented in this form of knowledge dissemination but have seen an upward trend as their representation in the broader field increased. After the implementation of online hearings, women were significantly more likely to give testimony, compared to men. The results also show that while overall, the geography and institutional status of expert witnesses did not change, an increase in the probability of female economists from these groups is documented. The results imply that digital tools promoting flexibility can alleviate disparities in high-impact dissemination by academics, which in turn can increase policymakers’ access to high-quality researchers with a diverse pool of ideas, perspectives, and knowledge.
Astrid Ulv Thomsen is a PhD fellow at Copenhagen Business School in the Department of Strategy and Innovation. She studies disparities in science – a key challenge both for individual opportunities and for the effective allocation of talent. Her research examines when and why inequalities in the access to resources in science emerge, and how supply- and demand-side factors shape access to disseminating knowledge to policy spheres. Astrid is in the third year of her PhD and is currently visiting Bocconi University in Milan hosted by Myriam Mariani.
Please click here to register.
Data
10:30 - 12:00
Luogo
Building BL26 – Room 0.19 (ground floor) Department of Management, Economics and Industrial Engineering Via R. Lambruschini 4/B, 20156 MilanoOrganizzatore
Politecnico di MilanoEventi
03 →
novembre
11
dicembre 2025
LABORATORI POLITECNICI dipartimenti | territorio | didattica | tecnologia
05
novembre 2025
From Rankings to Insight: International Benchmarking with Composite Indicators to inform Education Policy
06
novembre 2025
Convegno dei risultati di Ricerca dell’Osservatorio 5G & Connected Digital Industry
11
novembre 2025
Convegno dei risultati di Ricerca dell’Osservatorio Digital Identity
12
novembre 2025
Discursive Futures: Mapping How Organizations Imagine and Materialize the Future
12
novembre 2025
Impatto, metriche e valore dell’Open Innovation: cosa conta davvero?
18
novembre 2025
Convegno dei risultati di Ricerca dell’Osservatorio Software & Digital Native Innovation
19
novembre 2025
Next-Gen & Wealth: La voce delle next gen sui patrimoni delle famiglie imprenditoriali
20
novembre 2025
From the Ivory Tower to Capitol Hill: Which Academics Get a Voice in Congress?
25
novembre 2025
Convegno dei risultati di Ricerca dell’Osservatorio Quantum Computing & Communication
27
novembre 2025
Purpose in Action: Ripensare la governance strategica e la leadership per un cambiamento reale
01
dicembre 2025
Il profitto e la cura. La sostenibilità e le voci che non abbiamo ascoltato
02
dicembre 2025
Convegno dei risultati di Ricerca dell’Osservatorio Startup Thinking, Startup & Scaleup Hi-tech e Digital Transformation Academy
02 →
dicembre
03
dicembre 2025
Per il grande pubblico. L’architettura tra dibattito, divulgazione e strategie narrative
04
dicembre 2025
Convegno dei risultati di Ricerca dell’Osservatorio Omnichannel Customer Experience
10
dicembre 2025
Digital readiness and skills: a portrait of Europe’s large and super-large enterprises
11
dicembre 2025
Convegno dei risultati di Ricerca dell’Osservatorio Fintech & Insurtech
11
dicembre 2025