Skip to Main Content
Back to Directory

Rebecca Xie

PhD Student

Hometown: Medford, Oregon

Academic Background:

Bachelor of Arts, International Affairs and Chinese Language and Literature, University of Oregon (2014)

Master of Public Administration, Evans School of Public Policy and Governance (2021)

Research Interests:

My primary research centers on understanding how households enter financially precarious positions, how they attempt to consumption smooth in the face of income and expense shocks, and how institutional mechanisms mediate distress and promote financial stability. I approach these questions with an interdisciplinary lens that combines insights from public affairs, economics, and sociology. My work explores both voluntary and coercive financial interventions, including nonprofit credit counseling, private creditor forbearance, and wage garnishment. Broadly, my research seeks to illuminate the lifecycle of financial instability—from the structural and behavioral causes of distress to the institutional designs that shape recovery—with the goal of informing policy and programs that support household financial resilience.

In a second stream of research, I examine how involvement in the criminal legal system affects economic outcomes. One line of work investigates racial disparities in drug court admissions and the broader implications for addiction recovery and long-term economic productivity. Another explores how different case dispositions—such as dismissal versus conviction—shape subsequent employment and earnings, including whether individuals who are not convicted still face labor market penalties. Together, this research seeks to understand how institutional decision-making within the justice system contributes to persistent inequalities in financial well-being and economic mobility.

Selected Reports

Working Papers

  • Xie, R.,(In Progress). Understanding Wage Garnishment in Columbus, Ohio: Descriptive Trends and Open Questions
  • Moulton, S. and Xie, R., (In Progress). Income volatility, Unemployment, and Financial Wellbeing: Understanding the Role of Credit Counseling
  • DiTommaso, A. and Xie, R., (In Progress). Case Disposition and Employment Outcomes: Descriptive Evidence from Franklin County, Ohio
  • Fraga, A., Lindsay, S., Liu, S., Munshi, A., Perdue, T., Ridgeway, D., Tossone, K., Xie, R., (In
  • Progress). Racial Disparities in Admittance to Drug Court.

Accepted Conference Presentations 

  • Employers as Arbiters of Injustice? A Case Disposition Perspective (ASC, 2024; DEPC, 2024)
  • Racial Disparities in Admittance to Drug Court (APPAM, 2023; ASC, 2023)
  • Temporary Debt Payment Relief or Long-Term Payment Restructuring? Insights from Credit Card Accommodations during the COVID-19 Pandemic (APPAM, 2023) 

Fellowships and Awards

  • APPAM Equity and Inclusion Fellowship, 2024
  • Conference Travel Award, John Glenn College of Public Affairs, 2024
  • Conference Travel Award, John Glenn College of Public Affairs, 2023
  • University Fellowship, The Ohio State University, 2023-2024
  • Evans School Fellowship, Evans School of Public Policy and Governance, University of Washington, 2019-2021
  • PathwayOregon Fellowship, University of Oregon, 2011-2014 

Service

John Glenn College Doctoral Student Organization, Treasurer, 2024-2025

PROFESSIONAL EXPERIENCE 

Graduate Teaching Associate, John Glenn College of Public Affairs; Columbus, OH, 2025 

Graduate Research Associate, John Glenn College of Public Affairs; Columbus, OH, 2024-2025 

Research Associate, John Glenn College of Public Affairs; Columbus, OH, 2022-2023 

Research Associate, Washington State Institute for Public Policy; Olympia, WA, 2021-2022 

Research Intern, Joint Legislative Audit and Review Committee; Olympia, WA, 2021 

Consultant, Washington State Institute for Public Policy; Olympia, WA, 2021 

Research Aide, Washington State Institute for Public Policy; Olympia, WA, 2020