Simone Valerie Häckl-Schermer

Simone Valerie Häckl-Schermer serves as Associate Professor of Economics in the Department of Economics and Finance at the University of Stavanger's School of Business. She is actively affiliated with the Synapse Lab—an interdisciplinary research collective focused on motivation and learning interventions in educational and workplace contexts—where she organizes the Synapse Lab Research Seminar series.

Education:

• Ph.D. in Economics, WU - Vienna University of Economics and Business (May 2020)

Her research program centers on behavioral and experimental economics, investigating individual decision-making through lenses of intrinsic motivation, overconfidence, and grit. Recent work emphasizes field experiments in educational interventions (e.g., gender STEM gap reduction) and organizational economics (e.g., leadership behavior impacts), often employing randomized controlled trials in real-world settings like elementary schools and corporate environments.

Analysis of her 2021-2025 publications reveals consistent methodological rigor in experimental design across finance, labor economics, and education policy domains. Key thematic threads include gender dynamics in labor markets, ESG investment behaviors, and the causal effects of supportive leadership on employee outcomes, demonstrating interdisciplinary reach while maintaining behavioral economics as the unifying framework.

Scientific Awards:

• No scientific awards were documented in the provided materials

Advising and Grants: While specific student advisees or grant awards aren't enumerated, her leadership in Synapse Lab initiatives and policy-oriented dissemination (e.g., mentoring scheme research for 2025 implementation) suggests active mentorship and applied research funding engagement. Conference presentations at SOLE, Advances with Field Experiments, and ESA World Meeting indicate robust scholarly networking.

Labs and Teams: As a core Synapse Lab member, she contributes to developing evidence-based interventions for motivation enhancement. Her organization of the lab's research seminar series facilitates cross-institutional collaboration on educational and workplace behavioral challenges, with recent projects spanning elementary school STEM interventions to corporate leadership training evaluations.