Sylvia Hristakeva

Sylvia Hristakeva is an Assistant Professor of Economics at Cornell University, affiliated with both the College of Arts and Sciences and the Cornell SC Johnson College of Business. Her research focuses on health economics, consumer behavior, pharmaceutical markets, and retail economics. She explores topics such as drug pricing policies, advertising impacts on health outcomes, and the socioeconomic effects of grocery store closures.

Her work bridges empirical methods with policy analysis, utilizing tools like text embeddings to assess food purchasing decisions and econometric models to evaluate legislative impacts. Recent studies include examining GLP-1 medication effects on consumer food choices and the consequences of price caps on pharmaceutical advertising.

Dr. Hristakeva’s publications span interdisciplinary areas, combining insights from marketing, public health, and industrial organization. Her research emphasizes practical policy implications, such as optimizing retailer contracts and assessing smoke-free legislation’s role in reducing pediatric emergency visits.