Dr Anke Plagnol
Contact details
Personal links
About
Overview
Dr Plagnol received her BA in European Economic Studies from Otto-Friedrich-Universitaet Bamberg, Germany and an MA and PhD in Economics from the University of Southern California, USA. Following her PhD, she was a postdoctoral researcher in the Sociology Department at the University of Cambridge. At Cambridge, she had an Early Career Fellowship from the Leverhulme Trust and the Isaac Newton Trust, Cambridge. She was also a Research Fellow at Darwin College, Cambridge.
She joined City, University of London in May 2013 as a Lecturer and was promoted to Senior Lecturer in 2019.
Qualifications
- PhD, University of Southern California, United States
- MA, University of Southern California, United States
- BA, University of Bamberg, Germany
Research
Dr Plagnol's research is interdisciplinary, drawing on theories and methods from psychology, economics and sociology. She is interested in the choices that individuals make and how these affect their subjective well-being, for instance to what extent a woman's decision to return (or not to return) to work after childbirth influences her overall satisfaction with life.
Recent research projects have focused on female labour force participation, work-life conflict, financial satisfaction and aspirations.
Research interests:
- Subjective well-being
- Behavioural economics
- Positive psychology
- Female labour force participation
- Job satisfaction
- Gender equality
PhD supervision
Dr Plagnol would welcome enquiries from potential PhD students interested in any of the above mentioned areas.
Research funding
Leverhulme Trust Early Career Fellowship, April 2010 - April 2013
Project title: Female labour force participation and well-being
Salary support and research expenses
Isaac Newton Trust, Cambridge, April 2010 - April 2013
provided matching funding for Leverhulme Trust Early Career Fellowship
Publications
Publications by category
Books (3)
- Corr, P. and Plagnol, A.C. (2023). Behavioral Economics The Basics. Routledge. ISBN 9780367764326.
- Corr, P. and Plagnol, A. (2018). Behavioral Economics The Basics. Routledge. ISBN 9781138228900.
- Scott, J.L., Dex, S. and Plagnol, A.C. (Eds.), (2012). Gendered Lives: Gender Inequalities in Production and Reproduction. Edward Elgar Publishing. ISBN 9781849806268.
Chapters (7)
- Jansson-Boyd, C. and Plagnol, A. (2020). Why happiness studies ought to include qualitative research components. In Hackett, P. and Hayre, C. (Eds.), Handbook of Ethnography in Healthcare Research Routledge. ISBN 9780367336332.
- Macchia, L. and Plagnol, A.C. (2019). The Subjective Well-Being Political Paradox: Evidence from Latin America. The Economics of Happiness (pp. 371-384). Springer International Publishing. ISBN 9783030158347.
- Plagnol, A.C. and Macchia, L. (2018). Economics of subjective well- being: Evaluating the evidence for the Easterlin paradox. Socio Economic Environment and Human Psychology Social Ecological and Cultural Perspectives (pp. 225-246).
- Plagnol, A. (2014). Chasing the 'good life': gender differences in work aspirations of American men and women. In Eckermann, E. (Ed.), Gender, Lifespan and Quality of Life - An international perspective Springer. ISBN 9789400778283.
- Scott, J.L. and Plagnol, A.C. (2012). Work-family conflict and well-being in Northern Europe. In Scott, J.L., Dex, S. and Plagnol, A.C. (Eds.), Gendered Lives: Gender Inequalities in Production and Reproduction Edward Elgar Publishing. ISBN 1849806268.
- Scott, J., Dex, S., Joshi, H. and Plagnol, A. (2012). Introduction: Gender inequalities in production and reproduction. In Scott, J.L., Dex, S. and Plagnol, A.C. (Eds.), Gendered Lives: Gender Inequalities in Production and Reproduction Edward Elgar Pub. ISBN 9781849806268.
- Scott, J.L., Plagnol, A. and Nolan, J. (2010). Perceptions of quality of life: Gender differences across the life course. In Scott, J. and Lyonette, C. (Eds.), Gender Inequalities in the 21st Century (pp. 193-212). Edward Elgar Publishing. ISBN 9781848444386.
Journal articles (32)
- Plagnol, A.C. (2026). Review of the Book: Easterlin, R. A., & O’Connor, K. J. (2025). The Happiness Revolution in Europe (Elements in Economics of European Integration). Cambridge University Press. Applied Research in Quality of Life. doi:10.1007/s11482-026-10572-z
- Mortlock, J.T., Turner, N., Plagnol, A.C., Beaumont, A. and Bourne, M. (2026). From complexity responses to enacted practice: Mindfulness as a multi-level metacognitive capability in project leadership. International Journal of Project Management, 44(2), pp. 102830-102830. doi:10.1016/j.ijproman.2026.102830
- Tølbøll, K.B., Stead, J. and Plagnol, A.C. (2026). Instagram Passive Active Use Measure (iPAUM): Development, validation and relation to self-esteem. Cyberpsychology: Journal of Psychosocial Research on Cyberspace, 20(1). doi:10.5817/cp2026-1-10
- Macchia, L., Plagnol, A.C. and Easterlin, R.A. (2024). Trends and fluctuations in financial satisfaction and macroeconomic indicators in times of economic changes: the case of Latin America. International Journal of Happiness and Development, 8(3), pp. 295-312. doi:10.1504/ijhd.2024.137970
- Yaman, F., Cubi-Molla, P. and Plagnol, A.C. (2022). Why do immigrants become less happy? Explanations for the decrease in life satisfaction of immigrants in Germany over time. Migration Studies, 10(4), pp. 670-702. doi:10.1093/migration/mnac034
- Gumy, J.M., Plagnol, A.C. and Piasna, A. (2022). Job satisfaction and women's timing of return to work after childbirth in the UK. Work and Occupations. doi:10.1177/07308884221087988
- Yates, J. and Plagnol, A.C. (2022). Female computer science students: A qualitative exploration of women’s experiences studying computer science at university in the UK. Education and Information Technologies pp. 3079-3105. doi:10.1007/s10639-021-10743-5
- Farrar, S.T., Plagnol, A.C. and Tapper, K. (2022). The effect of priming on food choice: A field and laboratory study. Appetite, 168, pp. 105749-105749. doi:10.1016/j.appet.2021.105749
- Gash, V. and Plagnol, A.C. (2021). The Partner Pay Gap: Associations between Spouses’ Relative Earnings and Life Satisfaction among Couples in the UK. Work, Employment and Society, 35(3), pp. 566-583. doi:10.1177/0950017020946657
- Macchia, L., Plagnol, A.C. and Powdthavee, N. (2020). Buying Happiness in an Unequal World: Rank of Income More Strongly Predicts Well-Being in More Unequal Countries. Personality and Social Psychology Bulletin, 46(5), pp. 769-780. doi:10.1177/0146167219877413
- Macchia, L. and Plagnol, A.C. (2019). Life Satisfaction and Confidence in National Institutions: Evidence from South America. Applied Research in Quality of Life, 14(3), pp. 721-736. doi:10.1007/s11482-018-9606-3
- Powdthavee, N., Plagnol, A.C., Frijters, P. and Clark, A.E. (2019). Who Got the Brexit Blues? The Effect of Brexit on Subjective Wellbeing in the UK. Economica, 86(343), pp. 471-494. doi:10.1111/ecca.12304
- Verhoef, M., Plagnol, A.C. and May, V. (2018). Linking Formal Child Care Characteristics to Children’s Socioemotional Well-Being: A Comparative Perspective. Journal of Child and Family Studies, 27(11), pp. 3482-3496. doi:10.1007/s10826-018-1185-2
- Piasna, A. and Plagnol, A. (2018). Women’s Job Quality Across Family Life Stages: An Analysis of Female Employees Across 27 European Countries. Social Indicators Research, 139(3), pp. 1065-1084. doi:10.1007/s11205-017-1743-9
- Macchia, L., Plagnol, A.C. and Reimers, S. (2018). Does experience with high inflation affect intertemporal decision making? Sensitivity to inflation rates in Argentine and british delay discounting choices. Journal of Behavioral and Experimental Economics, 75, pp. 76-83. doi:10.1016/j.socec.2018.05.006
- Gerson, J., Plagnol, A.C. and Corr, P.J. (2017). Dimensionality of the Iowa-Netherlands Comparison Orientation Measure and Its Relationship to Reinforcement Sensitivity Theory. Journal of Individual Differences, 38(4), pp. 256-264. doi:10.1027/1614-0001/a000242
- Gerson, J., Plagnol, A.C. and Corr, P.J. (2017). Passive and Active Facebook Use Measure (PAUM): Validation and relationship to the Reinforcement Sensitivity Theory. Personality and Individual Differences, 117, pp. 81-90. doi:10.1016/j.paid.2017.05.034
- Gerson, J., Plagnol, A. and Corr, P. (2016). Subjective well-being and social media use: Do personality traits moderate the impact of social comparison on Facebook? Computers in Human Behavior, 63, pp. 813-822. doi:10.1016/j.chb.2016.06.023
- Piasna, A. and Plagnol, A. (2016). Arbeitsplatzqualität und weibliche Erwerbsbeteiligung in Europa (Job quality and women's labour market participation in Europe). WSI-Mitteilungen, 69(4), pp. 273-282
- Shemyakina, O.N. and Plagnol, A. (2013). Ethnicity, subjective well-being and armed conflict: Evidence from Bosnia-Herzegovina. Social Indicators Research, 113(3), pp. 1129-1152. doi:10.1007/s11205-012-0131-8
- Plagnol, A.C. (2011). Financial satisfaction over the life course: The influence of assets and liabilities. Journal of Economic Psychology, 32(1), pp. 45-64. doi:10.1016/j.joep.2010.10.006
- Plagnol, A. and Scott, J. (2011). What matters for well-being: Individual perceptions of quality of life before and after important life events. Applied Research in Quality of Life, 6(2), pp. 115-137
- Plagnol, A.C., Scott, J. and Schober, P. (2010). Gender equality in paid and unpaid work: priorities for UK policy intervention. Equality, Diversity and Inclusion: An International Journal, 29(7), pp. 711-715. doi:10.1108/02610151011074425
- Plagnol, A.C. and Huppert, F.A. (2010). Happy to Help? Exploring the Factors Associated with Variations in Rates of Volunteering Across Europe. SOCIAL INDICATORS RESEARCH, 97(2), pp. 157-176. doi:10.1007/s11205-009-9494-x
- Plagnol, A. (2010). Subjective well-being over the life course: Conceptualizations and evaluations. Social Research: an international quarterly of the social sciences, 77(2), pp. 749-768
- Plagnol, A.C. and Scott, J. (2009). Conference report: Gender inequalities in the twenty‐first century. Equal Opportunities International, 28(8), pp. 687-692. doi:10.1108/02610150911001715
- Plagnol, A.C. and Scott, J. (2009). Report on a seminar on gender equality during the credit crunch. Equal Opportunities International, 28(6), pp. 532-535. doi:10.1108/02610150910980819
- Plagnol, A., Rowley, E., Martin, P. and Livesey, F. (2009). Industry perceptions of the barriers to commercialization of regenerative medicine products in the UK. Regenerative Medicine, 4(4), pp. 549-559
- Scott, J., Nolan, J. and Plagnol, A. (2009). Panel data and open-ended questions: Understanding perceptions of quality of life. Twenty-First Century Society: Journal of the Academy of Social Sciences, 4(2), pp. 123-135
- Easterlin, R.A. and Plagnol, A.C. (2008). Life satisfaction and economic conditions in East and West Germany pre- and post-unification. Journal of Economic Behavior and Organization, 68(3-4), pp. 433-444. doi:10.1016/j.jebo.2008.06.009
- Plagnol, A. and Easterlin, R.A. (2008). Aspirations, attainments, and satisfaction: Life cycle differences between American women and men. Journal of Happiness Studies, 9(4), pp. 601-619
- Zimmermann, A.C. and Easterlin, R.A. (2006). Happily ever after? Cohabitation, marriage, divorce, and happiness in Germany. Population and Development Review, 32(3), pp. 511-528. doi:10.1111/j.1728-4457.2006.00135.x
Report
- Piasna, A. and Plagnol, A. (2015). Job quality and women’s labour market participation. European Trade Union Institute.
Scholarly edition
- Powdthavee, N., Plagnol, A.C., Frijters, P. and Clark, A.E. Who Got the Brexit Blues? Using a Quasi-Experiment to Show the Effect of Brexit on Subjective Wellbeing in the UK.
Other (2)
- Macchia, L., Plagnol, A. and Powdthavee, N.(2019). Why do people tolerate income inequality?
- Plagnol, A. The impact of volunteering.