Tim Kautz

Curriculum Vitae [Download]


CURRENT POSITION

Senior Researcher, Mathematica, Princeton, NJ Sep. 2015 - Present

AFFILIATIONS

Senior Fellow, Behavior Change for Good Initiative, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA Aug. 2019 - Present
Adjunct Professor, Institute for Economic and Social Research, Jinan University, Guangzhou, China Sep. 2016 - Present
Network Leader, Human Capital and Economic Opportunity Global Working Group, University of Chicago, Chicago, IL Jun. 2015 - Present
Senior Visiting Fellow, briq - Institute on Behavior & Inequality, Bonn, Germany Apr. 2019

EDUCATION

Ph.D. Economics, University of Chicago
Jun. 2015
M.A. Economics, University of Chicago Jun. 2012
B.A. Economics (with Honors), Stanford University Jun. 2008

JOURNAL ARTICLES

  • Kautz, Tim and Wladimir Zanoni. (2024). "Measurement and Development of Noncognitive Skills in Adolescence: Evidence from Chicago Public Schools and the OneGoal Program." Journal of Human Capital, 18(2): 272-303.

  • Feng, Shuaizhang, Yu Gan, Yujie Han, and Tim Kautz. (2024). "Shorter Can Be Better: Balancing Length and Predictive Power when Measuring Noncognitive Skills to Predict Academic Outcomes." Economics Letters, 236: 111598.

  • Lira, Benjamin, Joseph M. O'Brien, Pablo A. Peñ a, Brian M. Galla, Sidney D'Mello, David S. Yeager, Amy Defnet, Tim Kautz, Kate Munkacsy, and Angela L. Duckworth. (2022). "Large Studies Reveal How Reference Bias Limits Policy Applications of Self-Report Measures.'' Scientific Reports, 12: 19189.

  • Feng, Shuaizhang, Yujie Han, James J. Heckman, and Tim Kautz. (2022). "Comparing the Reliability and Predictive Power of Child, Teacher, and Guardian Reports of Noncognitive Skills." Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, 119(6): e2113992119.

  • Schochet, Peter Z., Nicole E. Pashley, Luke W. Miratrix, and Tim Kautz. (2022). "Design-Based Ratio Estimators and Central Limit Theorems for Clustered, Blocked RCTs." Journal of the American Statistical Association, 117(540): 2135-2146.

  • Milkman, Katherine L., Dena Gromet, Hung Ho, Joseph S. Kay,..., Tim Kautz,..., and Angela L. Duckworth. (2021). "Megastudies Improve the Impact of Applied Behavioural Science." Nature, 600: 478-483.

  • Duckworth, Angela L., Tim Kautz, Amy Defnet, Emma Satlof-Bedrick, Sean Talamas, Benjamin Lira Luttges, and Laurence Steinberg. (2021). "Students Attending School Remotely Suffer Socially, Emotionally, and Academically." Educational Researcher, 50(7): 479-482.

  • Hock, Heinrich, Dara Lee Luca, Tim Kautz, and David Stapleton. (2021). "Improving the Outcomes of Youth with Medical Limitations: Evidence from the National Job Corps Study." Journal of Economics & Management Strategy, 32(3): 636-656.

  • Deke, John, Thomas Wei, and Tim Kautz. (2021). "Asymdystopia: The Threat of Small Biases in Evaluations of Education Interventions that Need to be Powered to Detect Small Impacts." Journal of Research on Educational Effectiveness, 14(1): 207-240.

  • Chen, Yuanyuan, Shuaizhang Feng, James J. Heckman, and Tim Kautz. (2020). "Sensitivity of Self-Reported Non-Cognitive Skills to Survey Administration Conditions." Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, 117(2): 931-935.

  • Heckman, James J. and Tim Kautz. (2012). "Hard Evidence on Soft Skills." Labour Economics, 19(4): 451-464.

  • Kautz, Tim, Eran Bendavid, Jay Bhattacharya, and Grant Miller. (2010). "AIDS and Declining Support for Dependent Elderly People in Africa: Retrospective Analysis Using Demographic and Health Surveys." British Medical Journal, 340: c2841.

    • BOOK CHAPTERS

  • Heckman, James J., Tomas Jagelka, and Tim Kautz. (2021). "Some Contributions of Economics to the Study of Personality." In Handbook of Personality, Vol. 4, edited by O.P. John and R.W. Robins. New York, NY: Guilford Press. pp. 853-892.

  • Heckman, James J. and Tim Kautz. (2014). "Achievement Tests and the Role of Character in American Life," In The Myth of Achievement Tests: The GED and the Role of Character in American Life, edited by J.J. Heckman, J.E. Humphries, and T. Kautz. Chicago, IL: University of Chicago Press. pp. 3-56.

  • Heckman, James J., John Eric Humphries, and Tim Kautz. (2014). "Who Are The GEDs," In The Myth of Achievement Tests: The GED and the Role of Character in American Life, edited by J.J. Heckman, J.E. Humphries, and T. Kautz. Chicago, IL: University of Chicago Press. pp. 139-170.

  • Heckman, James J., John Eric Humphries, and Tim Kautz. (2014). "The Economic and Social Benefits of GED Certification," In The Myth of Achievement Tests: The GED and the Role of Character in American Life, edited by J.J. Heckman, J.E. Humphries, and T. Kautz. Chicago, IL: University of Chicago Press. pp. 171-267.

  • Heckman, James J. and Tim Kautz. (2014). "Fostering and Measuring Skills: Interventions that Improve Character and Cognition," In The Myth of Achievement Tests: The GED and the Role of Character in American Life, edited by J.J. Heckman, J.E. Humphries, and T. Kautz. Chicago, IL: University of Chicago Press. pp. 293-317.

  • Heckman, James J., John Eric Humphries, and Tim Kautz. (2014). "What Should be Done?," In The Myth of Achievement Tests: The GED and the Role of Character in American Life, edited by J.J. Heckman, J.E. Humphries, and T. Kautz. Chicago, IL: University of Chicago Press. pp. 431-436.

  • Almlund, Mathilde, Angela Lee Duckworth, James J. Heckman, and Tim Kautz. (2011). "Personality Psychology and Economics," In Handbook of the Economics of Education, Vol. 4, edited by E. Hanushek, S. Machin, and L. Woessman, eds. Amsterdam: Elsevier. pp. 1-181.

    • SELECTED POLICY REPORTS AND BRIEFS

  • Kautz, Tim, Christina Kent, and Dan Thal. (2024). "Using Bayesian Methods to Conduct Subgroup Analysis in Evaluations of Employment Programs." OPRE Report 2024-027. Washington, DC: Office of Planning, Research, and Evaluation, Administration for Children and Families, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services.

  • Kautz, Tim and Julius Anastasio. (2024). "The Predictive Power of Measures of Self-Regulation Skills Among Adults with Low Incomes." OPRE Report 2024-008. Washington, DC: Office of Planning, Research, and Evaluation, Administration for Children and Families, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services.

  • Moore, Quinn, Tim Kautz, Sheena McConnell, Owen Schochet, and April Wu. (2023). "Can a Participant-Centered Approach to Setting and Pursuing Goals Help Adults with Low Incomes Become Economically Stable?" OPRE Report 2023-139. Washington, DC: Office of Planning, Research, and Evaluation, Administration for Children and Families, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services.

  • Kautz, Tim, Kathleen Feeney, Hanley Chiang, Sarah Lauffer, Maria Bartlett, and Charles Tilley. (2021). "Using a Survey of Social and Emotional Learning and School Climate to Inform Decisionmaking." Washington, DC: Regional Educational Laboratory Mid-Atlantic, National Center for Education Evaluation and Regional Assistance, Institute of Education Sciences, U.S. Department of Education.

  • Kautz, Tim, and Quinn Moore. (2020). "Selecting and Testing Measures of Self-Regulation Skills Among Low-Income Populations." OPRE Report 2020-138. Washington, DC: Office of Planning, Research, and Evaluation, Administration for Children and Families, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services.

  • Goldring, Ellen, Melissa A. Clark, Mollie Rubin, Laura K. Rogers, Jason A. Grissom, Brian Gill, Tim Kautz, Moira McCullough, Michael Neel, and Alyson Burnett. (2020). "Changing the Principal Supervisor Role to Better Support Principals: Evidence from the Principal Supervisor Initiative." Princeton, NJ: Mathematica.

  • Kautz, Tim, Charles Tilley, Christine Ross, and Natalie Larkin. (2020). "Development of a School Survey and Index as a School Performance Measure in Maryland: A REL-MSDE Research Partnership." Washington, DC: Regional Educational Laboratory Mid-Atlantic, National Center for Education Evaluation and Regional Assistance, Institute of Education Sciences, U.S. Department of Education.

  • Herrmann, Mariesa, Melissa Clark, Susanne James-Burdumy, Christina Tuttle, Tim Kautz, Virginia Knechtel, Dallas Dotter, Claire Smither Wulsin, and John Deke. (2019). "The Effects of a Principal Professional Development Program Focused on Instructional Leadership." NCEE Report 2020-0002. Washington, DC: National Center for Education Evaluation and Regional Assistance, Institute of Education Sciences, U.S. Department of Education.

  • Heckman, James J., Tim Kautz, and Charles Tilley. (2019). "Advancing the Measurement of Non-Cognitive Skills: Evidence from Chicago Public Schools." Princeton, NJ: Mathematica.

  • Moore, Quinn, Sheena McConnell, Alan Werner, Tim Kautz, Kristen Joyce, Kelley Borradaile, and Bethany Bolland. (2019). "Evaluation of Employment Coaching for TANF and Related Populations: Evaluation Design Report." OPRE Report 2019-65. Washington, DC: Office of Planning, Research, and Evaluation, Administration for Children and Families, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services.

  • Kautz, Tim, and Quinn Moore. (2018). "Measuring Self-Regulation Skills in Evaluations of Employment Programs for Low-Income Populations: Challenges and Recommendations." OPRE Report 2018-83. Washington, DC: Office of Planning, Research, and Evaluation, Administration for Children and Families, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services.

  • Kautz, Tim, and Russel Cole. (2017). "Selecting Benchmark and Sensitivity Analyses." Evaluation Technical Assistance Brief. Rockville, MD: Office of Adolescent Health, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services.

  • Deke, John, Thomas Wei, and Tim Kautz. (2017). "Asymdystopia: The Threat of Small Biases in Evaluations of Education Interventions that Need to be Powered to Detect Small Impacts." NCEE Report 2018-4002. Washington, DC: National Center for Education Evaluation and Regional Assistance, Institute of Education Sciences, U.S. Department of Education.

  • Kautz, Tim, Peter Z. Schochet, and Charles Tilley. (2017). "Comparing Impact Findings from Design-based and Model-based Methods: An Empirical Investigation." NCEE Report 2017-4026. Washington, DC: National Center for Education Evaluation and Regional Assistance, Institute of Education Sciences, U.S. Department of Education.

  • Kautz, Tim, James J. Heckman, Ron Diris, Bas ter Weel, and Lex Borghans. (2014). "Fostering and Measuring Skills: Improving Cognitive and Non-Cognitive Skills to Promote Lifetime Success." Paris, France: Organisation of Economic Co-operation and Development.

  • Macurdy, Thomas, Jonathan Gibbs, Tim Kautz, Thomas Deleire, and Margaret O'Brian-Strain. (2009). "Geographic Variation in Drug Prices and Spending in the Part D Program." Baltimore: Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services.

    • WORKS IN PROGRESS

  • Lira, Benjamin, Maria Bartlett, Tim Kautz, and Angela L. Duckworth. "Remote Schooling Depresses Course Grades for the Most Vulnerable Students." Under review.

    • EDITED VOLUMES

  • Heckman, James J., John Eric Humphries, and Tim Kautz. (2014). The Myth of Achievement Tests: The GED and the Role of Character in American Life. Chicago, IL: University of Chicago Press.

    • FUNDING, FELLOWSHIPS, AND AWARDS

    Spencer Foundation Grant (Co-PI), "Advancing the Measurement of Non-Cognitive skills" ($490k)
    ECMC Foundation, "Evaluation of Chicago's OneGoal Program" ($100k)
    Milgrom Foundation Successful Pathways Initiative, "Evaluation of Chicago's OneGoal Program" ($50k)
    Esther and T.W. Schultz Endowment Fellowship, University of Chicago
    Social Sciences Fellowship, University of Chicago
    National Science Foundation Graduate Fellowship
    Young Investigator Award, Conference on Retroviruses and Opportunistic Infections (2009)
    Anna Laura Meyers Award for an Outstanding Economics Honors Thesis, Stanford University

    PRESENTATIONS

    2023: Association for Public Policy Analysis & Management Conference
    2022: Research and Evaluation Conference on Self-Sufficiency
    2020: Association for Public Policy Analysis Management Conference, Society for Research on Educational Effectiveness Conference
    2019: National Center for Education Statistics STATS-DC Data Conference, Institute on Behavior and Inequality at Bonn University
    2018: Symposium of the Turkish Private Schools Association, Association for Public Policy Analysis & Management Conference
    2017: Society of Labor Economics Annual Meeting, University of Chicago (Measuring and Assessing Skills Conference), Jinan University, Association for Public Policy Analysis & Management Conference
    2016: University of Oxford (RISE Annual Conference)
    2015: University of Virgina (Batten School), Columbia University (Teachers College), Stanford University (Colloquium on Social Mobility in the Americas), University of Chicago (Measuring and Assessing Skills Conference), SUNY Binghamton, Latin-American Congress on the Assessment of Competencies and Citizenship Skills and Abilities
    2014: Effects of Socioeconomic Status on Identity and Personality Conference, University of Chicago (Family Economics Workshop), American Economic Association Annual Meeting, World Bank
    2013: Personality and Identity Formation in Childhood and Adolescence, University of Zurich
    2008-2012: American Economic Association Annual Meeting, University of Chicago (The Spencer Conference), Conference on Retroviruses and Opportunistic Infections, Stanford University (Research in Progress Seminar)

    INTERVIEWS, OPINION PIECES, AND BLOGS

    Intervening Early: Do Data on SEL and School Climate Help Identify Students at Risk of Poor Academic Outcomes?, RELevant Blog Sep. 2021
    Developing School Climate Surveys for Statewide Accountability in Maryland, RELevant Blog Jan. 2019
    There's More to Life than Test Scores: Measuring Social and Emotional Skills to Support Student Success, OET Medium Blog Mar. 2018
    'I Am Someone Who Tends to Be Lazy': The Importance of Soft Skills, and How Not to Measure Them in Schools, EdLab Blog Jul. 2016
    New GED Test Fails to Measure Skills that Matter Most, Seattle Times (Op-Ed) Jan. 2014
    Testing Companies See Cash Cow in Revamped GED, Politico (Interview) Dec. 2013
    The New GED, Education Writers Association (Webinar) Dec. 2013
    Second-Chance Diploma: Examining the GED, American Radio Works (Interview) Sep. 2013
    GED Program: 'America's Largest High School', WAMU (Interview) Mar. 2013
    Does the GED Give Students a Second Chance?, WBEZ (Interview) Aug. 2012
    The Other African AIDS Orphans, Science Life (Interview) Jun. 2010

    PROFESSIONAL SERVICE

    Referee: American Economic Journal: Economic Policy, Education Finance and Policy, Forum for Health Economics and Policy, Journal of Applied Econometrics, Journal of Economic Behavior and Organization, Journal of Health Economics, Journal of Human Capital, Journal of Labor Economics, Journal of Policy Analysis and Management, Journal of Political Economy, Labour Economics, Learning and Individual Differences, Oxford Bulletin of Economics and Statistics, Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, SAGE Open, Science
    Member: Council of Distinguished Scientists, National Commission on Social, Emotional, and Academic Development

    PREVIOUS POSITIONS

    Research Assistant, Center for the Economics of Human Development, Chicago, IL Jun. 2010 - Present
    Quantitative Research Analyst, Acumen LLC, Burlingame, CA Jan. 2008 - Aug. 2008
    Research Assistant, Center for Health Policy, Stanford, CA Jan. 2006 - Jun. 2008

    MISCELLANEOUS

    Computer Skills: Stata, SAS, Mplus, MatLab, Mathematica, C++ (basic), Java (basic), R (basic), html (basic)
    Language: Spanish (intermediate), Swahili (very basic)
    Hobbies: Photography, Hiking