Long-time Collaborators Reunite at the Stone Center
Where Ideas on Economic Growth and Intergenerational Mobility Converge
Andros Kourtellos and Chih Ming Tan have been researching inequality for nearly two decades. Initially drawn to cross-country differences in economic growth, their international focus evolved into a focus on intergenerational inequality. Just as some countries are rich while others remain poor, patterns of mobility within those countries reveal striking disparities. These parallels underscore why inequality and mobility are not only pressing research questions but also among the most consequential challenges countries face today.
In their most recent paper, Kourtellos and Tan, together with Steven Durlauf, Stone Center Director, and Giovanni Bernardo, ask: Can effort and individual agency overcome the constraints of circumstance? Their study, which appears in the National Bureau of Economic Research and the Stone Center Working Paper Series in August 2025, provides new estimates on inequality of opportunity across 31 countries in the European Union. Using European Union Statistics on Income and Living Conditions (EU-SILC) data from 2011 to 2019, they review disposable household income adjusted for inherited circumstances. Their overall findings affirm the pivotal role of inherited circumstances in driving unequal outcomes.
A Collaboration Framed by Global Perspectives
These scholars’ insights into inequality and mobility are enriched by deep, cross-national experiences. Andros Kourtellos, the Department Chair and Professor in Economics at the University of Cyprus, grew up in the aftermath of the Turkish invasion of Cyprus in 1974, witnessing displacement firsthand. This experience shaped his family’s ethos toward education as a pathway to success—one that can never be taken away.
5,000 miles away, Chih Ming Tan, the Chester Fritz Distinguished Professor and Page Endowed Chair in Applied Economics at the University of North Dakota, was raised in Singapore, where he observed how rapid economic growth shapes lived outcomes. But it was Tan’s experience serving in the military in his early twenties that transformed his understanding of social and economic opportunities across different groups that make up the cross-section of society.
The group met at the University of Wisconsin-Madison in the early 2000s, where Durlauf was a Professor of Economics and Kourtellos and Tan were completing their PhDs. Durlauf and Kourtellos’s relationship quickly evolved from mentor-mentee to collaborators, beginning with their first joint paper, “The Local Solow Growth Model,” published in 2001. Tan, who earned his Ph.D. in 2004 under Durlauf’s supervision, subsequently joined the team. The trio’s first joint publication, “Are Any Growth Theories Robust?“, appeared in The Economic Journal in 2008. A testament to this paper’s influence is its citation by Ben Bernanke in a 2011 speech as Chair of the Federal Reserve.
The trio has gone on to form a durable and productive partnership, adding many joint publications and ongoing projects to their names. Over the years, their collective work has advanced and deepened insights into key dynamics in inequality, including those related to status traps and the Great Gatsby Curve. Their chief contributions to inequality research have been methodological in nature. Through introducing nuance and innovation to standard approaches, they have pushed the boundaries of existing estimation techniques, particularly by exploring model uncertainty and its implications across diverse contexts. This collaboration demonstrates a continuity of inquiry that is as rare as it is enduring.
In-Person Exchange as a Catalyst for New Ideas
The opportunity to come together in person advances research in ways that far surpass virtual collaboration. In the early stages of projects, freely exchanging ideas often sparks the brightest paths forward. Once those directions are established, asynchronous collaboration becomes far easier and more effective. The week spent at the Stone Center in Chicago, Illinois, provided this group the space to do just that.
Looking ahead, the trio plans to continue improving methodology and explore under-researched dimensions of socio-economic outcomes to shape how scholars and policymakers alike understand predictive models and the mechanisms driving inequality.
