Applied Microeconomics, Economics of Crime, Law and Economics, Labor Economics

Anna Bindler is an Associate Professor of Economics at the University of Cologne. Before starting in Cologne, she was an Assistant Professor at the University of Gothenburg. She is an Affiliate at the Department of Economics at the University of Gothenburg, a Research Associate at CAGE/University of Warwick and a Fellow of the Global Labor Organization. Anna Bindler studied Economics at the University of Bonn and ENSAE Paris, and received her Ph.D from University College of London in 2015.

Published papers

• Discontinuities in the Age-Victimization Profile and the Determinants of Victimisation

  Bindler, A. L., Hjalmarsson, R., Ketel, N., & Mitrut, A. (2021). Discontinuities in the Age-Victimization Profile and the Determinants of Victimisation. Economic Journal.

• Scaring or Scarring? Labour Market Effects of Criminal Victimisation

  Bindler, A. & Ketel, N. Scaring or Scarring? (2022) Labour Market Effects of Criminal Victimisation. Journal of Labor Economics.

• The Impact of the First Professional Police Forces on Crime

  Bindler, A., Hjalmarsson, R. (2021). The Impact of the First Professional Police Forces on Crime. Journal of the European Economic Association, jvab011.

Discussion papers

• Murphy’s Law or Luck of the Irish? Disparate Treatment of the Irish in 19th Century Courts

• Discontinuities in the Age-Victimization Profile and the Determinants of Victimization

• The Impact of the First Professional Police Forces on Crime

• Scaring or Scarring? Labour Market Effects of Criminal Victimisation

Policy briefs

• Murphy’s Law versus the luck of the Irish: Disparate treatment of the Irish in 19th-century courts

• Do Police Reduce Crime? Evidence from the 1829 Introduction of the London Metropolitan Police

What is the best thing about your job?

To work on topics that I am curious about, working together with interesting and interested people who want to develop themselves constantly – and of course the standing desk in my office.

If you had not gone into research, what would you be doing today?

If I already had my PhD, I would probably have liked to join an international organisation as an economist. If I had to choose a completely new field, this would be a tough choice: Maybe psychology, architecture or something completely different.

Who or what inspires you?

People who think positively and, especially in research, ambitious top researchers who nevertheless are approachable and take time for others.

When was the last time you had to change your mind?

Constantly, it starts in everyday life with whether I prefer a cappuccino or a latte. Joking apart: learning when it is the right time to change your mind is one of the most essential parts of research.

Which advice would you have needed yourself as a doctoral student?

As a postdoc, I got some great advice that I would have liked to have earlier: To collect positive feedback, for example from students or colleagues, in a notebook. This really helps on a bad day when things aren’t going so well and you doubt yourself.