Date of Award

Summer 2025

Embargo Period

7-23-2025

Document Type

Dissertation

Degree Name

Doctor of Philosophy (PhD)

College/School/Department

Department of Economics

Program

Economics

First Advisor

Chun-Yu Ho

Second Advisor

Gerald Marschke

Committee Members

Chun-Yu Ho, Gerald Marschke, Pinka Chatterji

Subject Categories

Economics

Abstract

The first chapter examines the impact of bank failures on team-based innovation, focusing on the persistence of inventor teams under credit supply constraints. Using U.S. patent and FDIC data from 2000 to 2012, this paper presents three main findings. First, bank failures significantly reduce both the number of team patents and the number of inventors with collaborators. Second, negative banking shocks decrease the likelihood that inventor teams remain together for projects in subsequent periods. However, team-specific factors, including geographic proximity, prior collaboration experience, and smaller team sizes, mitigate the adverse effects of bank failures and help preserve the stability of co-authorship. The findings suggest that limited capital availability during bank failures can disrupt the continuity in teamwork, but the effects vary across inventor teams. This study offers important and timely policy insights into how credit supply disruptions influence joint production and the stability of teamwork in innovation processes.

The second chapter studies the impacts of California’s 2004 paid family leave (CA-PFL) program on gender disparities in innovation. Using U.S. patent records from 1994 to 2019 and a difference-in-differences approach, we present four key findings. First, CA-PFL program increases the share of patents with female involvement but not the proportion of female inventors, indicating the program bridges the gender gap in patenting activity. Second, event studies show that the effects of CA-PFL expanded over time, consistent with limited early awareness and take-up. Third, the program is more effective for more experienced female inventors, and support their career continuity. Fourth, the program is more effective for private firms, where employer-provided leave benefits are typically less generous. Overall, the results highlight the role of state-mandated PFL program in advancing female representation in the innovation workforce.

The third chapter estimates the effect of CA-PFL program on young women’s leavetaking. Using the synthetic control method, this study finds that women of childbearing age are more likely to be on leave after the implementation of the policy.

License

Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.

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