Zuzana Irsova

Professor of Economics · Charles University, Prague
Anglo-American University · METRICS, Stanford

Zuzana Irsova

I am an economist who gathers the estimates from thousands of studies into open datasets and asks what the evidence shows when read as a whole.

What bias correction changes, field by field

One square per dataset. Area shows the number of estimates; colour, how bias correction changes the size of the mean estimate.

Labor

Capital-Labor Substitution: 3,186 estimates, 2022; corrected mean 67% closer to zeroOpen the paper and dataset. Intertemporal Substitution in Labor Supply: 1,128 estimates, 2023; corrected mean 50% closer to zeroOpen the paper and dataset. Skilled-Unskilled Labor Substitution: 965 estimates, 2024; corrected mean 122% further from zeroOpen the paper and dataset. Beauty and Professional Success: 1,159 estimates, 2025; corrected mean 40% closer to zeroOpen the paper and dataset. Native and Immigrant Labor Substitution: 1,091 estimates, 2026; corrected mean 69% further from zeroOpen the paper and dataset.

Trade

Euro Adoption and Trade: 61 estimates, 2010; corrected mean 76% closer to zeroOpen the paper and dataset. Vertical Spillovers from FDI: 2,772 estimates, 2011; corrected mean 7% further from zeroOpen the paper and dataset. Horizontal Spillovers from FDI: 1,373 estimates, 2013; correction leaves the mean unchangedOpen the paper and dataset. National Borders and Trade: 1,271 estimates, 2017; corrected mean 42% closer to zeroOpen the paper and dataset. Armington Elasticity: 3,524 estimates, 2020; corrected mean 144% further from zeroOpen the paper and dataset. FDI Spillovers in the Czech Republic: 332 estimates, 2020; corrected mean 826% further from zero, and its sign flipsOpen the paper and dataset.

Macro & money

Transmission Lags of Monetary Policy: 1,519 estimates, 2013; corrected mean 13% closer to zeroOpen the paper and dataset. The Price Puzzle: 1,060 estimates, 2013; corrected mean 394% further from zeroOpen the paper and dataset. Structural Reforms and Economic Growth: 537 estimates, 2014; corrected mean 631% further from zeroOpen the paper and dataset. Elasticity of Intertemporal Substitution: 2,735 estimates, 2015; corrected mean 97% closer to zeroOpen the paper and dataset. Cross-Country Heterogeneity in Intertemporal Substitution: 2,735 estimates, 2015Open the paper and dataset. Habit Formation in Consumption: 597 estimates, 2017; correction leaves the mean unchangedOpen the paper and dataset. Central Bank Equity and Monetary Policy: 176 estimates, 2020Open the paper and dataset. Excess Sensitivity of Consumption: 3,127 estimates, 2020; corrected mean 70% closer to zeroOpen the paper and dataset. Remittances and Economic Growth: 490 estimates, 2020; corrected mean 62% closer to zeroOpen the paper and dataset. Monetary Policy and House Prices: 1,674 estimates, 2023; corrected mean 4% closer to zeroOpen the paper and dataset. Optimal Inflation Rate: 702 estimates, 2026; corrected mean 18% closer to zeroOpen the paper and dataset.

Finance

Financial Development and Economic Growth: 1,334 estimates, 2015; corrected mean 33% further from zeroOpen the paper and dataset. Bank Competition and Financial Stability: 598 estimates, 2016; corrected mean 83% further from zero, and its sign flipsOpen the paper and dataset. Firm Size and Stock Returns: 1,746 estimates, 2019; corrected mean 66% closer to zeroOpen the paper and dataset. Forward Premium Puzzle: 3,643 estimates, 2021; corrected mean 1% further from zero, and its sign flipsOpen the paper and dataset. Hedge Fund Performance: 1,019 estimates, 2024; corrected mean 7% closer to zeroOpen the paper and dataset. Shareholder Activism and Firm Value: 1,851 estimates, 2025; corrected mean 50% closer to zeroOpen the paper and dataset. Heterogeneity in Hedge Fund Performance: 1,019 estimates, 2026Open the paper and dataset. Female Directors and ESG Ratings: 533 estimates, 2026; corrected mean 55% closer to zeroOpen the paper and dataset. Trust, Rule of Law, and the Size Premium: 212 estimates, 2026Open the paper and dataset.

Education & behavior

Tuition and Demand for Higher Education: 442 estimates, 2018; corrected mean 81% closer to zeroOpen the paper and dataset. Individual Discount Rates: 539 estimates, 2022; corrected mean 59% closer to zeroOpen the paper and dataset. Student Employment and Education: 872 estimates, 2024; corrected mean 124% further from zeroOpen the paper and dataset. Relative Risk Aversion: 1,018 estimates, 2025; corrected mean 87% closer to zeroOpen the paper and dataset. Social Comparison as a Behaviour Change Technique: 79 estimates, 2025Open the paper and dataset. Class Size and Student Achievement: 2,906 estimates, 2026; corrected mean 16% closer to zeroOpen the paper and dataset. Financial Incentives and Performance: 2,193 estimates, 2026; corrected mean 39% closer to zeroOpen the paper and dataset. Effect of COVID-19 on Learning: 291 estimates, 2026; corrected mean 5% closer to zeroOpen the paper and dataset.

Energy & environment

Price Elasticity of Gasoline Demand: 202 estimates, 2012; corrected mean 55% closer to zeroOpen the paper and dataset. Anthropogenic Climate Change: 48 estimates, 2015; corrected mean 51% closer to zeroOpen the paper and dataset. Income Elasticity of Gasoline Demand: 701 estimates, 2015; corrected mean 64% closer to zeroOpen the paper and dataset. Social Cost of Carbon: 267 estimates, 2015; corrected mean 67% closer to zeroOpen the paper and dataset. Natural Resources and Economic Growth: 605 estimates, 2016; corrected mean 67% closer to zero, and its sign flipsOpen the paper and dataset. Daylight Saving and Electricity Use: 101 estimates, 2018; corrected mean 97% closer to zeroOpen the paper and dataset. Income Elasticity of Water Demand: 307 estimates, 2018; corrected mean 42% closer to zeroOpen the paper and dataset. Price Elasticity of Electricity Demand: 3,744 estimates, 2026; corrected mean 40% closer to zeroOpen the paper and dataset.
47 datasets, 58,484 estimates, open under CC BY 4.0. Each square links to its paper and data.

Selected research

More research
  1. Spurious Precision in Meta-Analysis of Observational Research2025 · Zuzana Irsova, Pedro Bom, Tomas Havranek, Heiko RachingerNature Communications 16, 8454MAIVE · first and corresponding author
  2. Publication and Attenuation Biases in Measuring Skill Substitution2024 · Tomas Havranek, Zuzana Irsova, Lubica Laslopova, Olesia ZeynalovaReview of Economics and Statistics 106(5), 1187⁠–⁠1200
  3. Publication Bias and Model Uncertainty in Measuring the Effect of Class Size on Achievement2026 · Matej Opatrny, Tomas Havranek, Zuzana Irsova, Milan ScasnyJournal of Labor Economics, forthcoming
  4. Financial Incentives and Performance: A Meta-Analysis of Experiments in Economics2026 · Petr Cala, Tomas Havranek, Zuzana Irsova, Martina Luskova, Jindrich Matousek, Jiri NovakJournal of Political Economy Microeconomics, forthcoming
  5. Reproducibility and Robustness of Economics and Political Science Research2026 · Abel Brodeur and others (347 authors, including Zuzana Irsova)Nature 652, 151⁠–⁠156
  6. Individual Discount Rates: A Meta-Analysis of Experimental Evidence2022 · Jindrich Matousek, Tomas Havranek, Zuzana IrsovaExperimental Economics 25(1), 318⁠–⁠358

Latest post

All posts
  1. If you are writing a bachelor’s or master’s thesis in economics, our new app can help. It reads your idea, proposal, or draft the way your opponent will. It quotes your text and says what to change. It does not write the thesis for you.7 October 2026

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About

I specialize in labor economics, international economics and meta-research. My full name is Zuzana Irsova Havrankova. My commentary and interviews, mostly in Czech, are archived on meta-analysis.cz, together with research notes and a podcast episode about my work.

Research impact and professional roles