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Michael A. Leeds

Temple University, USA, and IZA, Germany

I am happy that the World of Labor takes such a broad approach to labor policy. Examining the impact of sports participation on schooling and labor market outcomes is useful to policymakers in both the US and Europe

IZA World of Labor role

Author

Current position

Professor of Economics, Temple University, USA; Director of Graduate Studies, Temple University, USA

Research interest

Economics of sports, labor economics

Website

https://liberalarts.temple.edu/academics/faculty/leeds-michael

Positions/functions as a policy advisor

President, North American Association of Sports Economists (2013–2014)

Past positions

Assistant Dean, Temple University Japan (2007–2009); Visiting Associate Professor, University of Michigan (2006-2007); Associate Professor and Director of Fox School Honors, Temple University (1994–2008)

Qualifications

PhD Economics, Princeton University, 1983

Selected publications

  • The Economics of Sports. Boston, MA: Addison Wesley, 2014 (with P. von Allmen).Handbook on the Economics of Women’s Sports. London: Edward Elgar, 2013 (edited with E. M. Leeds).

  • “Are sunk costs really irrelevant? Draft position and playing time in the NBA.” Economic Inquiry (Forthcoming) (with D. Leeds and A. Motomura).

  • “A stadium by any other name: The value of naming rights.” Journal of Sports Economics 8:6 (2007): 581–595 (with E. M. Leeds and I. Pistolet).

  • “Interscholastic athletics and investment in human capital.” Social Science Quarterly 88:3 (2007): 729–744 (with J. Stull and C. Miller).

article(s)

  • Youth sports and the accumulation of human capital

    Positive contributions to cognitive and non-cognitive skills justify public support of youth sports

    Michael A. Leeds, February 2015
    In response to declining budgets, many school districts in the US have reduced funding for sports. In Europe, parents may respond to difficult economic times by spending less on sports clubs for their children. Such cuts are unwise if participating in sports is an investment good as well as a consumption good and adds to students’ human capital. The value of sports is hard to measure because people who already possess the skills needed to succeed in school and beyond might be more likely to participate in sports. Most studies that account for this endogeneity find that participation in youth sports improves academic and labor market performance.
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