The Wage Penalty for Motherhood in Spain (2009 2017): The Role of the Male Partner's Job Characteristics

Exploiting microdata from the Living Conditions Survey, and applying the coarsened exact matching algorithm to select a treatment and a control group of comparable women, we analyse the motherhood wage penalty in Spain from 2009 to 2017, with special attention to the effect of the male partner’s job characteristics. We find that mothers of children 0-3 years old suffered a penalty in their hourly wages of around 4.2%, which significantly increased when their partner was self-employed. Moreover, we only detect a wage penalty for high-educated women and for those who work in medium and large firms

Micro and macro data on household wealth, income and expenditure: comparing the Spanish Survey of Household Finances (EFF) to other statistical sources

El presente estudio muestra cómo comparan las magnitudes construidas a partir de los microdatos de la Encuesta Financiera de las Familias (EFF) con magnitudes de fuentes alternativas, como las Cuentas Financieras y otras encuestas de renta y consumo. Para ello, primero se analizan las diferencias más destacadas entre las fuentes y los principales conceptos que pueden compararse. Para aquellas magnitudes que son conceptualmente comparables, se cuantifica en qué medida las magnitudes de la EFF capturan las de las otras fuentes usadas. En este sentido, se documenta que el grado de comparabilidad conceptual y cuantitativa es alto. Los resultados muestran que tanto los agregados no financieros como las deudas en la EFF son similares a las magnitudes agregadas de las otras fuentes. La composición de los activos financieros en manos de los hogares en términos agregados es similar entre fuentes, mientras que la comparación individual de cada categoría de activo varía. En particular, las magnitudes correspondientes a las acciones cotizadas y las no cotizadas son las más cercanas a las magnitudes comparables de las Cuentas Financieras. Para la renta, el agregado calculado a partir de la EFF es similar a los agregados calculados a partir de otras fuentes diferentes. Los resultados también muestran que la similitud entre la EFF y otras fuentes ha mejorado a lo largo de las olas para algunas variables concretas, como, por ejemplo, para las magnitudes de deudas.This paper assesses how magnitudes constructed from Spanish Survey of Household Finances (EFF) micro data compare with magnitudes from alternative sources, including the Financial Accounts of the Spanish Economy (FASE) and other income and consumption surveys. To do so, first we analyse the main differences among the sources and the main concepts that can be compared. For those magnitudes that are conceptually comparable, we quantify the extent to which the EFF magnitudes capture those from the other sources used. We document a high degree of conceptual and quantitative comparability. Our results show that aggregate non-financial assets and debts from the EFF are similar to the aggregated magnitudes from other sources. The composition of the financial asset portfolio held by households in aggregate terms is also similar across the sources, while the comparison for each individual financial asset category varies. In particular, listed and unlisted shares in the survey are the closest to their FASE counterparts. For income, the aggregate calculated on the basis of the EFF data is close to the aggregates calculated from several different sources. The results also show that the similarity between the EFF and other sources has improved across waves for some particular variables, for example, debt magnitudes

The Rare IL22RA2 Signal Peptide Coding Variant rs28385692 Decreases Secretion of IL-22BP Isoform-1, -2 and -3 and Is Associated with Risk for Multiple Sclerosis.

The IL22RA2 locus is associated with risk for multiple sclerosis (MS) but causative variants are yet to be determined. In a single nucleotide polymorphism (SNP) screen of this locus in a Basque population, rs28385692, a rare coding variant substituting Leu for Pro at position 16 emerged significantly (p = 0.02). This variant is located in the signal peptide (SP) shared by the three secreted protein isoforms produced by IL22RA2 (IL-22 binding protein-1(IL-22BPi1), IL-22BPi2 and IL-22BPi3). Genotyping was extended to a Europe-wide case-control dataset and yielded high significance in the full dataset (p = 3.17 × 10-4). Importantly, logistic regression analyses conditioning on the main known MS-associated SNP at this locus, rs17066096, revealed that this association was independent from the primary association signal in the full case-control dataset. In silico analysis predicted both disruption of the alpha helix of the H-region of the SP and decreased hydrophobicity of this region, ultimately affecting the SP cleavage site. We tested the effect of the p.Leu16Pro variant on the secretion of IL-22BPi1, IL-22BPi2 and IL-22BPi3 and observed that the Pro16 risk allele significantly lowers secretion levels of each of the isoforms to around 50%-60% in comparison to the Leu16 reference allele. Thus, our study suggests that genetically coded decreased levels of IL-22BP isoforms are associated with augmented risk for MS

To a paradigm shift to the evaluation of scientific activity into Higher Education

La evaluación actual de la actividad científica se lleva a cabo mediante un mismo patrón internacional. Esta circunstancia ha estimulado un notable número de investigaciones críticas. Sin embargo, la abundancia de críticas contrasta con la falta de propuestas alternativas. En este trabajo se presenta una síntesis de los inconvenientes observados en las prácticas de evaluación, identificando consecuencias negativas para la propia ciencia, sus miembros y su utilidad pública respecto a las Instituciones de Educación Superior. También se añade una revisión de voces alternativas. Finalmente, se propone un conjunto de ocho principios para ayudar a promover un cambio de paradigma.The current assessment of scientific activity is performed by the same international pattern. This has stimulated a remarkable number of critical researches. However, the abundance of critical publications contrasts with the lack of alternative proposals. This paper presents a synthesis of the drawbacks observed in assessment practices, identifying negative consequences for science itself, its members and its public utility, in reference to Higher Education Institutions. A review of alternative voices is also added. Finally, this paper proposes a set of eight principles to assist in promoting a paradigm shift