Stanford Economics

Melanie Morten

Associate Professor, Economics Department, Stanford University

Publications

Bryan, G., Frye, K., Morten, M. (2025). Spatial Economics for Low- and Middle-Income Countries.

Handbook of Regional and Urban Economics.

Morten, M. & Oliveira, J. (2024). The Effects of Roads on Trade and Migration: Evidence from a Planned Capital City.

AEJ: Applied, 16(2), 389-421

Bryan, G., Chowdhury, S., Mobarak, A.M., Morten, M., Smits, J. (2023). Encouragement and Distortionary Effects of Conditional Cash Transfers.

Journal of Public Economics, 228 (December), 105004

Meghir, C., Mobarak, M., Mommaerts, C., & Morten, M. (2022). Migration and Informal Insurance.

The Review of Economic Studies, 89(1), 452-480

NBER Working Paper 26082

Balboni, C., Bryan, G., Morten, M., & Siddiqi, B. (2021). Could Gentrification Stop the Poor from Benefiting from Urban Improvements?

American Economic Review: Papers and Proceedings, 111, 532-537

Bryan, G. & Morten, M. (2019). The Aggregate Productivity Effects of Internal Migration: Evidence from Indonesia.

Journal of Political Economy, 127(5), 2229-2268

Morten, M. (2019). Temporary Migration and Endogenous Risk Sharing in Village India.

Journal of Political Economy, 127(1), 1-46. (Lead Article)

Karlan, D., Morten, M. & Zinman, J. (2016). A Personal Touch in Text Messaging can Improve Microloan Repayment.

Behavioral Science and Policy, 1(2), 25-31.

Bollard, A., McKenzie, D., Morten, M., & Rapoport, H. (2011). Remittances and the Brain Drain Revisited: The Microdata Show That More Educated Migrants Remit More.

World Bank Economic Review, 25(1), 132-156.

Bollard, A., McKenzie, D., & Morten, M. (2010). The Remitting Patterns of African Migrants in the OECD.

Journal of African Economics, 19(5), 605-634.

Revising

Balboni, C., Bryan, G., Morten, M., O'Connor C., & Siddiqi, B. (2025). Impacts of Infrastructure: People versus Place.

Revision requested, American Economic Review

Working Papers

Mare, D., Morten, M., Sanderson, L. (2024). Firm and Labor Market Effects of a Migrant Shortage.

Chandrasekhar, A., Morten, M., & Peter, A. (2020). Network-Based Hiring: Local Benefits; Global Costs.

NBER Working Paper 26806

Work in Progress

Morten, M., Magaloni, B., Cubillos, S., Wang, A. (2026). The Returns to Temporary Migration: Experimental Evidence from the H-2A Program.

Stanford Guestworker Migration Initiative — Co-PI: Beatriz Magaloni.

Morten, M., Torres, J.D., McAvoy-Bickford, B. (2025). Temporary Legal Protection: Labor Market and Migration Responses.

Bryan, G., Frye, K., Morten, M. (2025). Urbanization in the Developing World: Measurement and Decomposition.