Andreas Stoller – PhD Student in Economics

I am a PhD student in Economics at the University of Fribourg, under the supervision of Professor Martin Huber.

Research interests: Applied microeconomics, policy evaluation, health economics, causal machine learning

JMP: "Impact of Tobacco Advertising Restrictions in Switzerland: A Quasi-Experimental Study on the Effect of Billboard Bans on Smoking" [PDF]

Here is my full CV.

Contact me via email or on LinkedIn.

Bio

I am a fourth-year PhD student in Economics at the University of Fribourg, under the supervision of Professor Martin Huber. In my PhD thesis, I assess the effectiveness of prevention policies such as tobacco taxes, tobacco billboard bans, and regulations on e-cigarettes and heated tobacco products. I am an applied microeconomist using state-of-the-art econometric methods for policy evaluation, with an emphasis on causal inference and causal machine learning. I have previously worked on social security and labor market interventions at the Swiss Federal Statistical Office and the University of Basel.

Research

Working Papers

"Impact of Tobacco Advertising Restrictions in Switzerland: A Quasi-Experimental Study on the Effect of Billboard Bans on Smoking" (Job Market Paper) [PDF]

Abstract: This study assesses the impact of tobacco billboard bans on smoking in Switzerland, exploiting their staggered adoption across regions, i.e., the cantons. Based on retrospective smoking histories from the Swiss Health Survey, a panel of individuals’ annual smoking status is reconstructed, containing more than one million observations from 1993 to 2017. Estimation relies on staggered difference-in-differences as well as a complementary latent factor model, which relaxes the common trends assumption. The findings indicate that tobacco billboard bans lead to a reduction in smoking rates. Reductions of up to 0.9 percentage points correspond to an approximate 3% decline in the smoking rate. The effect is driven by women and individuals aged 25–44 and 65+. Overall, this evidence suggests that even partial tobacco advertising bans, such as billboard bans, can effectively reduce smoking rates and serve as a valuable policy tool within comprehensive tobacco prevention strategies.

"Effect of Cigarette Price and Tax Increases on Smoking in Europe: A Difference-in-Differences Study with Double Machine Learning", with M. Huber [PDF]

Abstract: We estimate the effect of cigarette price and tax increases on smoking rates using Eurobarometer survey data from 27 European Union countries between 2012 and 2020. Following a difference-in-differences approach, we compare individuals exposed to large price and tax increases with those in stable price and tax environments. Estimation is based on a difference-in-differences estimator with double machine learning, which relaxes the functional form assumptions typically imposed by parametric approaches such as two-way fixed effects. Our results indicate that tax increases reduce smoking rates among individuals who smoke at least once per month and among daily smokers. The reduction is primarily driven by individuals aged 15–24. We examine the sensitivity of our findings to functional form assumptions and treatment definitions. While estimates are robust to alternative functional form assumptions, they are sensitive to whether the treatment is defined as binary or continuous.

Work in Progress

"Impact of Regulations on E-Cigarettes and Heated Tobacco Products Among Youth in Switzerland", with M. Huber

"Municipal Policies and Solar Adoption in Switzerland: Evidence Around a Federal Incentive Reform", with X. Raso-Domínguez and M. Huber

Funded Projects

"Evaluation of Tobacco Prevention in Switzerland" (Ger.: “Pilotstudie zur Wirkung der Tabakprävention auf die Gesundheit in der Schweiz: Ein kontrafaktischer Ansatz“), with M. Huber (Principal Investigator), Swiss Tobacco Prevention Fund, 2023–2024 [PDF]

As deputy principal investigator and research associate, I collaborated with Prof. Martin Huber on a research project about the effectiveness of tobacco prevention policies, funded by the Swiss Tobacco Prevention Fund. The study assesses a range of measures, from tobacco taxation and advertising restrictions to regulations on e-cigarettes and heated tobacco products. The resulting report provides recommendations for Swiss tobacco prevention policy and outlines requirements for future studies on tobacco prevention and related topics.

Teaching and Workshops

Teaching

Applied Econometrics (Bachelor), Teaching Assistant, University of Fribourg, 2022–2025

Big Data Methods (Master), Teaching Assistant, University of Fribourg, 2023 & 2025

Policy and Impact Evaluation (Master), Teaching Assistant, University of Fribourg, 2024 & 2026

Workshops

"Difference-in-Differences with Multiple Time Periods Using R", PhD Club at the Department of Economics of the University of Fribourg, 2026 [Presentation] [R Code]

"Difference-in-Differences with R", Swiss Centre of Expertise in Life Course Research (LIVES), 2026 [Presentation] [R Code]

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