STEPHEN ROLL (he/him), PhD, is Assistant Professor in the Brown School at Washington University and Co-Director of Research and Policy Innovation at the Center for Social Development.
Roll’s research focuses on promoting asset building, debt management, and economic security in lower-income populations. His most recent work focuses on the role of cash transfer programs in improving household balance sheets and economic mobility outcomes. He has conducted several studies of guaranteed income pilots around the country, including the St. Louis Guaranteed Basic Income program. He is also the leader of the Workforce Economic Inclusion and Mobility Project, which focuses on strengthening public and private safety nets for low-wage workers.
His work has been featured in numerous media outlets, including The Atlantic, The Wall Street Journal, NPR, the Washington Post, and the New York Times, and he has briefed the White House Domestic Policy Council, the Senate Joint Economic Committee, and the United States Supreme Court on the results of his research.
CSD Projects
Refund to Savings (R2S)
Financial Behaviors
The Refund to Savings experiment measures the effect of interventions informed by behavioral economics that seek to increase saving at tax time.
Response to COVID-19
Health
These studies explore the socioeconomic impacts and unmet needs on families and communities from the COVID-19 pandemic.
Workforce Economic Inclusion and Mobility
Income policy
The Workforce Economic Inclusion and Mobility (WEIM) project is designed to comprehensively examine the financial vulnerability of low-wage workers in the U.S. The research will contribute to identifying public and private sector innovations that improve financial security and economic mobility for low-wage workers in the U.S.