Anindya Sen

Professor

sen in front of hagey hall
asen@uwaterloo.ca

519-888-4567 x32123
Office: EC5 1003

CV: Anindya Sen

BA (Delhi); MA (Concordia); PhD (Toronto)

Recipient of the Distinguished Teacher Award

Areas of specialization: Pricing and firm strategy in imperfectly competitive markets such as retail gasoline; Deregulation of retail alcohol and marijuana; Smoking and cigarette taxes;  Poverty and the minimum wage; Government policy in electricity markets; Border effects and trade flows

Research interests

I am deeply interested in understanding the effects of government intervention and policy on the efficiency of markets and overall societal welfare. I have attempted to evaluate the effects of market structure and competition on retail prices in the gasoline and electricity markets. My published research has also focused on assessing the empirical impacts of a wide variety of policies, such as stricter impaired driving laws, mandatory seatbelt legislation, cigarette taxes, and the minimum wage. I am currently studying the effects of deregulating retail alcohol and marijuana markets. 

I believe strongly in the necessity of sharing and communicating research findings with policymakers and the public. Here are some examples of op-eds I have written for different media.   

“Evidence shows immigrants will get fewer jobs as Ontario ratchets up minimum wage to $15” commentary published by the Financial Post and available at https://financialpost.com/opinion/evidence-shows-immigrants-will-get-fewer-jobs-as-ontario-ratchets-up-minimum-wage-to-15. 

“Ontario makes a hash of marijuana retail distribution”, with Rosalie Wyonch, published by the Globe and Mail and available at https://www.theglobeandmail.com/report-on-business/rob-commentary/ontario-makes-a-hash-of-marijuana-retail-distribution/article36216587/.

“Ottawa, provinces must not let marijuana tax debate overshadow policy priorities”, with Rosalie Wyonch, published by the Globe and Mail and available at https://www.theglobeandmail.com/opinion/ottawa-provinces-must-not-let-marijuana-tax-debate-overshadow-policy-priorities/article36497367/

 “Federal pot report still leaves a lot of haze in the air”, commentary published by the Financial Post and available at https://financialpost.com/opinion/anindya-sen-federal-pot-report-still-leaves-a-lot-of-haze-in-the-air?r.   

‘Deep-6 the High-5 Ontario electricity program’, by Ben Dachis and Anindya Sen, published by the Financial Post, July 24, 2015, available at https://financialpost.com/opinion/deep-6-the-high-5-electricity-program?r

‘Changes to Beer Store won't help consumers’, by Anindya Sen, published by the Toronto Star,  Wed Apr 22 2015, available at https://www.thestar.com/opinion/commentary/2015/04/22/changes-to-beer-store-wont-help-consumers.html.

‘Time for Queen’s Park to open up beer and wine sales’, by Paul Masson and Anindya Sen, published by The Toronto Star, Wed Aug 20 2014, available at https://www.thestar.com/opinion/commentary/2014/08/20/time_for_queens_park_to_open_up_beer_and_wine_sales.html.

Biography

I was born in Saskatoon and grew up in Calgary and Montreal. However, I spent my teens and young adult life in Nigeria and India. As a result I was exposed to rather extreme differences in economic conditions and material comforts. I became interested in why people in prosperous countries like Canada could obtain their groceries and household needs from large and clean stores while individuals in less developed countries, had to access tumultuous (and vibrant) bazaars. The acute and chronic poverty I also encountered impacted me, and I began to wonder on what a government could and should do in terms of policy intervention. I saw economics as a natural outlet to answer these questions.

Selected publications

  • Sen, Anindya with Nathaniel T. Stevens, Francis Kiwon, Plinio P. Morita, Stefan H. Steiner, and Qihuang Zhang. "Estimating the Effects of Non-Pharmaceutical Interventions (NPIs) and Population Mobility on Daily COVID-19 Cases: Evidence from",forthcoming, Canadian Public Policy

  • Mahdiyeh Entezarkheir and Anindya Sen. "Market value, market share, and mergers: Evidence from a panel of U.S. firms." Managerial and Decision Economics, 2018; 39 (4): 498 DOI: 10.1002/mde.2924

  • Sen, Anindya and Kate Rybczynski, “Employment Effects of the Minimum Wage: Panel Data Evidence from Canadian Provinces”, Contemporary Economic Policy, 2018, vol. 36, issue 1, 116-135 https://doi.org/10.1111/coep.12241

  • Sen, Anindya, “Peak power problems: How Ontario’s industrial electricity pricing system hurts consumers”, The Electricity Journal, Volume 30, Issue 1, January–February 2017, Pages 62–67.

  • Sen, Anindya, "Is Retail Alcohol Deregulation Correlated with More Crime and Traffic Injuries? Evidence from Canadian Provinces", Canadian Journal of Criminology and Criminal Justice (2016), 58(2):251 http://mr.crossref.org/iPage?doi=10.3138%2Fcjccj.20160304

  • Zhiqi Chen, Horatiu A. Rus and Anindya Sen, "Border Effects Before and After 9/11: Panel Data Evidence Across Industries", The World Economy, Volume 39, Issue 10, pp. 1455–1672(pages 1456–1481)

  • Curry, Philip A. and Anindya Sen and George Orlov, "Crime, apprehension and clearance rates: Panel data evidence from Canadian provinces", Canadian Journal of Economics, Volume 49, Number 2, 1 May 2016, pp. 481-514(34) DOI: https://doi.org/10.1111/caje.12204

  • Bauer, Andrew M. and Macnaughton, Alan and Sen, Anindya, “Income Splitting and Anti-Avoidance Legislation: Evidence from the Canadian 'Kiddie Tax' “ (October 20, 2014). Forthcoming, International Tax and Public Finance (DOI: 10.1007/s10797-014-9342-z). Available at SSRN: https://papers.ssrn.com/sol3/papers.cfm?abstract_id=2497586

  • Anindya Sen, Hideki Ariizumi, and Natasha DeSousa: Evaluating the Relationship between Pay and Research Productivity: Panel Data Evidence from Ontario Universities, 40(1), Canadian Public Policy, March 2014, pp. 1-14.

  • Packelen, Mikko and Anindya Sen, “Static and Dynamic Merger Effects: A Market Share Based Empirical Analysis”,  International Review of Law and Economics, 2013, 36(1), pp. 12–24.

  • Sen, Anindya & Hideki Ariizumi, “Teen Families, Welfare Transfers, and the Minimum Wage: Evidence from Canada”, Canadian Journal of Economics, 2013, 46(1), pp. 338-360.
  • Sen, Anindya & Rybczynski, Kathleen & Van De Waal, Corey, 2011. "Teen employment, poverty, and the minimum wage: Evidence from Canada," Labour Economics, Elsevier, vol. 18(1), pages 36-47, January.
  • Anindya Sen, Anthony Clemente, and Linda Jonker, 2011. “Retail Gasoline Price Ceilings and Regulatory Capture: Evidence from Canada:" American Law & Economics Review", vol. 13(2), pages 532-564.
  • Wai Choi & Anindya Sen & Adam White, 2011. "Response of industrial customers to hourly pricing in Ontario’s deregulated electricity market," Journal of Regulatory Economics, Springer, vol. 40(3), pages 303-323, December.
  • Anindya Sen & Tony Wirjanto, 2010. "Estimating the impacts of cigarette taxes on youth smoking participation, initiation, and persistence: empirical evidence from Canada," Health Economics, John Wiley & Sons, Ltd., vol. 19(11), pages 1264-1280.
  • Sen, Anindya & Clemente, Anthony, 2010. "Intergenerational correlations in educational attainment: Birth order and family size effects using Canadian data," Economics of Education Review, Elsevier, vol. 29(1), pages 147-155, February.
  • Anindya Sen & Peter G.C. Townley, 2010. "Estimating the Impacts of Outlet Rationalization on Retail Prices, Industry Concentration, and Sales: Empirical Evidence from Canadian Gasoline Markets," Journal of Economics & Management Strategy, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 19(3), pages 605-633, 09.
  • Anindya Sen, 2007. "Does Increased Abortion Lead to Lower Crime? Evaluating the Relationship between Crime, Abortion, and Fertility," The B.E. Journal of Economic Analysis & Policy, Berkeley Electronic Press, vol. 7(1), pages 48.
  • Gruber, Jonathan & Sen, Anindya & Stabile, Mark, 2003. "Estimating price elasticities when there is smuggling: the sensitivity of smoking to price in Canada," Journal of Health Economics, Elsevier, vol. 22(5), pages 821-842, September.
  • Sen, Anindya, 2001. "An Empirical Test of the Offset Hypothesis," Journal of Law and Economics, University of Chicago Press, vol. 44(2), pages 481-510, October.
  • Anindya Sen, 2001. "Do stricter penalties deter drinking and driving? An empirical investigation of Canadian impaired driving laws," Canadian Journal of Economics, Canadian Economics Association, vol. 34(1), pages 149-164, February.