What are your research topics?
My research fields encompass public economics, labour economics and the economics of education. I carry out empirical research on themes that I find important in terms of economics and human welfare.
Where and how does the topic of your research have an impact?
At the moment, we are looking into the effects of the Finnish activation model for unemployment security. Decisions on the fate of the model are made by politicians. What we are trying to do is to find out how the model functions so that their decisions can be founded on research-based knowledge.
What is particularly inspiring in your field right now?
In the past two decades, large masses of data and empirical research based on them have revolutionised economics. Novel innovations relating, for example, to the evolution of artificial intelligence may engender another upheaval in methodological development.
Roope Uusitalo is the professor of public economics at the Faculty of Social Sciences and the Helsinki Graduate School of Economics.
Get to know the other new professors.