Silvia Barbareschi

PhD Candidate

Labor Economics Development Economics Behavioral Economics Field Experiments AI & Technology

Welcome! I am a PhD candidate in the Business and Public Policy group at the Haas School of Business, University of California Berkeley. I hold an MSc in Economics from Bocconi University and a BSc in Economics from Sapienza University of Rome.

In my research I study how AI and new technologies reshape labor market opportunities and inequality, with a focus on gender and ethnic disparities. Combining large-scale field experiments with structural models, I examine how AI hiring systems alter selection and discrimination, and how digital safety tools shape women's mobility and well-being. A second strand of my work studies the social and institutional barriers to women's economic participation, from how patriarchal norms shape women's freedom of movement to how workplace safety programs can advance the inclusion of immigrant women.

Research

Working Papers

Humans, AI, and Ethnic Gaps

Silvia Barbareschi, Angelica Bozzi, and Francesca Miserocchi

Funded by: LEAP, Bocconi University
Working paper soon
Call Me When You Get Home: Safety Technology and the Welfare Cost of Public Insecurity

Silvia Barbareschi and Maria Ventura

Funded by: UC Bekeley Department of Economics, LEAP, Bocconi University, the Center for Equity, Gender, and Leadership at the Haas School of Business, the Hub for Equal Representation in the Economy, the Fisher Center for Business Analytics, the Institute for Business Innovation
Working paper soon
Patriarchal Norms and the Willingness-to-pay for Women's Freedom of Movement: Experimental Evidence from Rural Tanzania

Silvia Barbareschi and Beatrice Montano

Funded by: LEAP, Bocconi University
Working paper soon

In patriarchal settings, men govern whether their wives travel, making male resource allocation the proximate determinant of female mobility. We ask whether increased awareness of gender-based violence (GBV) risk makes husbands more likely to invest in safe transport or to restrict travel altogether. We study this in rural Tanzania, where boda-boda motorcycle taxis are the primary mode of transport and GBV risk is salient. We formalize the theoretical ambiguity in a structural model that separates a safety preference margin—how much a husband values safe transport conditiononal on travel, from a mobility support margin—whether he funds the trip at all, and connects each to a distinct empirical estimate. Using a conjoint experiment and an incentivized willingness-to-pay elicitation embedded in a randomized field experiment with about N∼1200 people across 34 villages, we find that GBV awareness leaves men’s safety preferences unconditionally high while reducing their willingness to fund travel by 20%. Gatekeeping and genuine protective concern are not mutually exclusive.

Works in Progress

Enhancing Workplace Safety and Inclusion for Immigrant Women: Evaluating the Impact of the Purple Point Program

Silvia Barbareschi
RCT In progress
Funded by: J-PAL European Social Inclusion Initiative, Berkeley Workplace Culture Initiative
Call Me When You Get Home: New Technologies, and Safety in Public Spaces - In Italy

Silvia Barbareschi, Francesco Perrini, Clio Gressani, Paola Profeta, and Maria Ventura
RCT completed, draft in progress

Collaborations

During my PhD, I have been fortunate to build deep, lasting partnerships with a remarkable group of non-profits and start-ups working at the intersection of technology, AI, gender, and inclusion. They are reshaping the way policy and research collaborate, and my work would not be possible without them. Check them out!

DONNEXSTRADA

Non-profit addressing violence against women and safety in public spaces through its Punti Viola network of psychologists and lawyers; also runs research projects in schools.

VIOLA WALK HOME

Tech start-up (founded 2022) focused on personal safety, helping protect users during their journeys on foot with practical, intuitive tools to prevent risky situations. More about my role.

Restworld

HR-tech company for the hospitality (HoReCa) sector, helping restaurants, bars, and hotels manage staffing to benefit both workers and owners, with a focus on workplace well-being and social impact.

Teaching & Mentoring

Teaching

MBA200S — Data and Decisions

Graduate Student Instructor · Executive and Full-time MBA · UC Berkeley Haas

Fall 2022, 2023, 2024

152

students evaluated

≥ 6.3 / 7

average on each question

7 / 7

median on each question

Econometrics

Graduate Student Instructor · Bocconi University

Spring 2018

Guest Lectures

Research on AI and Public Policy

Guest Lecture · PUBPOL 138: Game Changer? An Introduction to A.I. and Public Policy · Goldman School of Public Policy, UC Berkeley

Spring 2026
Doing Research in Gender and the Economy

Guest Lecture · HPSC0007: Investigating the Sociology and Politics of Science · Department of Science & Technology Studies, UCL

Spring 2026

Mentoring

RISE Research Mentorship Program

Research Mentor · guided high-school students through independent research projects

2025
Undergraduate Research Apprentice Program (URAP)

Research Supervisor · mentored undergraduate research apprentices contributing to my research projects · UC Berkeley

2024
UC Berkeley Data Discovery

Project Mentor · led student teams applying economic, data science, and AI methods to research · College of Computing, Data Science, and Society (CDSS)

2023, 2024