Dimitria Freitas
Dimitria Freitas studied International Relations at TU Dresden. Since 2021 she is a doctoral candidate in Economics and working as a research associate at the Chair of Economics, in particular Economic Policy and Economic Research.
1. What is the title of your dissertation? How did you come up with the idea of dealing with this topic for your doctorate?
The working title of my dissertation is 'Essays on Economic Aspects of Challenges to Democracy'. The idea came about during my Master's thesis, in which I looked at the economic causes of right-wing populism. The topic was very topical then and now. When I started my Master's, the US presidential election with Trump's first victory and the Brexit referendum were taking place. I was also working as a student trainee at the Altmarkt in Dresden and experienced the Pegida protests up close every Monday.
In my master's thesis, I then investigated how globalization, in particular rising imports from China, contributed to the decline in industrial jobs and influenced the election results in the USA and the UK in 2016. When I started my doctorate, I delved further into the topic and expanded it to include aspects of structural policy. Structural policy aims to improve the economic framework conditions of a region by promoting infrastructure, education or the establishment of industry, for example. I am currently researching how structural policy measures influence regional development and local voting behavior.
2. What are the central research questions you are asking yourself in your dissertation and what methods are you using to try and answer these questions?
In my dissertation, I am primarily investigating three central questions: Firstly, I am investigating which factors encourage right-wing populism in Western democracies and what role economic aspects such as globalization, structural change and automation play in this. Secondly, I analyze the extent to which structural policy can address these economic challenges. And thirdly, I investigate how concrete measures, such as the relocation of public authorities and public jobs, affect the development of a region and the electoral behavior there. To find answers to these questions, I use both machine learning methods and causal inference approaches.
3. What do you think are the most exciting results of your research so far?
I find it particularly interesting that my results so far indicate a strong correlation between automation and the rise of right-wing populist parties in Eastern Europe. For Germany, my interim results show that the relocation of public authorities can create new jobs in the private sector and reduce the popularity of right-wing populists.
4. You recently presented a paper at the renowned NBER Conference? How did this come about and what were your impressions when you returned to Dresden?
At the beginning of last year, I applied for an NBER Open Call and was selected with my project on the relocation of public authorities. Together with outstanding economists such as Cecile Gaubert (University of California, Berkeley), David Neumark (University of California, Irvine), Gordon Hanson (Harvard University) and Dani Rodrik (Harvard University), I contributed to an edited volume on the current state of economic research on structural policy measures. My contribution was a global literature review on the potential of government relocation for regional development.