Yale Postdoctoral Trainees

PRFDHR Seminar: Gang Rule: Understanding and Countering Criminal Governance - Professor Chris Blattman

Gangs rule millions worldwide. Professor Chris Blattman studies how gangs govern, why, and whether the state can reclaim dominance. He first interviews dozens of gang leaders and thousands of residents in Medellin, Colombia, documenting this clandestine world. They govern to preserve local monopoly rents, but also because the state is remote. To demonstrate, Professor Blattman first harness exogenous variation in exposure to the state across internal borders. Over the long run, places more distant from police and services increase gang rule.

PRFDHR Seminar: Creating Coexistence: Intergroup Contact and Soccer in Post-ISIS Iraq

Can intergroup contact build social cohesion after war? Dr. Salma Mousa answers this question by randomly assigning Iraqi Christians displaced by the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (ISIS) to an all-Christian soccer team or to a team mixed with Muslims. She finds that the intervention improved behaviors toward Muslim peers: Christians with Muslim teammates were more likely to vote for a Muslim (not on their team) to receive a sportsmanship award, register for a mixed team next season, and train with Muslims six months after the intervention.

PRFDHR Seminar: Family-Based Mental Health Promotion for Somali Bantu and Bhutanese Refugees: Results of a Feasibility and Acceptability Trial - Professor Theresa Betancourt and Mr. Bhuwan Gautam

There are disparities in mental health of refugee youth compared with the general U.S. population. Professor Betancourt and Mr. Gautam will be presenting the results of a pilot feasibility and acceptability trial of the home-visiting Family Strengthening Intervention for refugees (FSI-R) using a community-based participatory research approach. The FSI-R aims to promote youth mental health and family relationships. Together with their co-authors, Dr. Betancourt and Mr.