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The Impact Of Highly Publicized Campus Scandals On College Outcomes

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  • Patrick Rooney
  • Jonathan Smith

Abstract

Recently, many high‐profile scandals have occurred on college campuses. How might scandals affect colleges' outcomes? To investigate, we construct a dataset of scandals at the top 100 U.S. universities from 2001 to 2013. We find that scandals with significant media coverage substantially reduce applications. For example, a scandal covered in a long‐form news article leads to a 10% drop in applications the following year‐roughly the same impact of dropping ten spots in prominent college rankings. This impact persists for 2 years. We find no impact on incoming student body competitiveness, yield, or alumni donations, and little effect on deterring future scandals. (JEL L82, I23, D83)

Suggested Citation

  • Patrick Rooney & Jonathan Smith, 2019. "The Impact Of Highly Publicized Campus Scandals On College Outcomes," Contemporary Economic Policy, Western Economic Association International, vol. 37(3), pages 492-508, July.
    • Handle: RePEc:bla:coecpo:v:37:y:2019:i:3:p:492-508
    DOI: 10.1111/coep.12427
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    Cited by:

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    2. Lindo, Jason M. & Marcotte, Dave E. & Palmer, Jane E. & Swensen, Isaac D., 2019. "Any press is good press? The unanticipated effects of Title IX investigations on university outcomes," Economics of Education Review, Elsevier, vol. 73(C).
    3. Kerianne Lawson, 2021. "The Lasting Impact of NCAA Sanctions: SMU and the Death Penalty," Journal of Sports Economics, , vol. 22(8), pages 946-981, December.
    4. Candon Johnson & Bryan C. McCannon, 2022. "Athletics and Admissions: The Impact of the Penn State Football Scandal on Student Quality," Journal of Sports Economics, , vol. 23(2), pages 200-221, February.

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    More about this item

    JEL classification:

    • L82 - Industrial Organization - - Industry Studies: Services - - - Entertainment; Media
    • I23 - Health, Education, and Welfare - - Education - - - Higher Education; Research Institutions
    • D83 - Microeconomics - - Information, Knowledge, and Uncertainty - - - Search; Learning; Information and Knowledge; Communication; Belief; Unawareness

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