Lars Vilhuber

Overview

His interest in statistical disclosure limitation issues is a consequence of his other research interest: working with highly detailed longitudinally linked data to analyze the effects and causes of mass layoffs, worker mobility, and the dynamics of the local labor market.

He is presently on the faculty of the Department of Economics at Cornell University, a Senior Research Associate at the ILR School at Cornell University, Ithaca, Executive Director of ILR’s Labor Dynamics Institute. He is the American Economic Association‘s Data Editor, affiliated with the U.S. Census Bureau (Center for Economic Studies, CES), and on advisory boards for French and Canadian restricted-access research data centers.

Over the years, he has also gained extensive expertise on the data needs of economists and other social scientists, having been involved in the creation and maintenance of several data systems designed with analysis, publication, replicability, and maintenance of large-scale code bases in mind.

Dr. Lars Vilhuber has an undergraduate degree in Economics from Universität Bonn, Germany, and a Ph.D. in Economics from Université de Montréal, Montreal, Canada. He has worked in both research and government. He has consulted with government and statistical agencies in Canada and the United States.

Research Focus

His research interests lie in the dynamics of the labor market: working with highly detailed longitudinally linked data, he has analyzed the effects and causes of mass layoffs, worker mobility, and the interaction between housing and the local labor market. Over the years, he has also gained extensive expertise on the data needs of economists and other social scientists, having been involved in the creation and maintenance of several data systems designed with analysis, publication, replicability, and maintenance of large-scale code bases in mind. His research in statistical disclosure limitation issues is a direct consequence of his profound interest in making data available in a multitude of formats to the broadest possible audience. His knowledge about various data enclave systems comes from both personal experience and the desire to improve the experience of others. He is an expert on data access, reproducible practices, and attempts to convey that to broader audiences of scientists and others.

Awards and Honors

• U.S. Census Bureau Bronze Medal, U.S. Census Bureau. 2025
• Statistical Partnerships Among Academe, Industry & Government Committee (SPAIG), American Statistical Association. 2025

Publications

Journal Articles

• David Card, Ian Schmutte, & Lars Vilhuber. (2023). Introduction to the Special Issue: Models of linked employer–employee data: Twenty years after “High Wage Workers and High Wage Firms”. Journal of Econometrics, 233(2), 333-339. (DOI:10.1016/j.jeconom.2023.01.012)
• Lars Vilhuber. (2023). Report by the AEA Data Editor. AEA Papers and Proceedings, 113. (DOI:10.1257/pandp.113.850)
• Lars Vilhuber. (2025). Reproducibility and Transparency versus Privacy and Confidentiality: Reflections from a Data Editor. Journal of Econometrics.
• Lars Vilhuber. (2022). Report by the AEA Data Editor. AEA Papers and Proceedings, 112. (DOI:10.1257/pandp.112.813)
• Carl Lagoze, & Lars Vilhuber. (2021). metajelo: A metadata package for journals to support external linked objects. International Journal of Digital Curation, 16(1). (DOI:10.2218/ijdc.v16i1.600)
• Lars Vilhuber. (2021). Report by the AEA Data Editor. AEA Papers and Proceedings, 111. (DOI:10.1257/pandp.111.808)
• Lars Vilhuber. (2021). Expansion, perspectives, and challenges. Journal of Privacy and Confidentiality, 11(1). (DOI:10.29012/jpc.777)
• Andrew Foote, Mark J. Kutzbach, & Lars Vilhuber. (2021). Recalculating ... : How Uncertainty in Local Labour Market Definitions Affects Empirical Findings. Applied Economics, 1-15. (DOI:10.1080/00036846.2020.1841083)
• Lars Vilhuber. (2020). Reproducibility and Replicability in Economics. Harvard Data Science Review. (DOI:10.1162/99608f92.4f6b9e67)
• Kevin L. McKinney, Andrew S. Green, John Abowd, & Lars Vilhuber. (2020). Total Error and Variability Measures with Integrated Disclosure Limitation for Quarterly Workforce Indicators and LEHD Origin Destination Employment Statistics in OnTheMap. Journal of Survey Statistics and Methodology. (DOI:10.1093/jssam/smaa029)
• Jahangir M. Alam, Benoit Dostie, Jörg Drechsler, & Lars Vilhuber. (2020). Applying Data Synthesis for Longitudinal Business Data across Three Countries. tatistics in Transition New Series, 21(4), 212-236. (DOI:10.21307/stattrans-2020-039)
• Aleksandar Nikolov, & Lars Vilhuber. (2020). Editorial for Special Issue on the Theory and Practice of Differential Privacy 2018. Journal of Privacy and Confidentiality, 10(1). (DOI:10.29012/jpc.736)
• Cynthia Dwork, Alan Karr, Kobbi Nissim, & Lars Vilhuber. (2020). On Privacy in the Age of COVID-19. Journal of Privacy and Confidentiality, 10(2). (DOI:10.29012/jpc.749)
• Lars Vilhuber, James Turitto, & Welch Keesler. (2020). Report by the AEA Data Editor. AEA Papers and Proceedings, 110, 764-75. (DOI:10.1257/pandp.110.764)
• Andrew S. Green, Mark J. Kutzbach, & Lars Vilhuber. (2019). Two Perspectives on Commuting: A Comparison of Home to Work Flows Across Job-Linked Survey and Administrative Files.
• Jonathan Ullman, & Lars Vilhuber. (2019). Editorial for Volume 9 Issue 2. Journal of Privacy and Confidentiality, 9(2). (DOI:10.29012/jpc.731)
• John Abowd, Ian M. Schmutte, William N. Sexton, & Lars Vilhuber. (2019). Why the Economics Profession Must Actively Participate in the Privacy Protection Debate. AEA Papers and Proceedings, 109, 397-402. (DOI:10.1257/pandp.20191106)
• Daniel H Weinberg, John Abowd, Robert F Belli, Noel Cressie, David C Folch, Scott H Holan, Margaret C Levenstein, Kristen M Olson, Jerome P Reiter, Matthew D Shapiro, Jolene D Smyth, Leen-Kiat Soh, Bruce D Spencer, Seth E Spielman, Lars Vilhuber, & Christopher K Wikle. (2018). EFFECTS OF A GOVERNMENT-ACADEMIC PARTNERSHIP: HAS THE NSF-CENSUS BUREAU RESEARCH NETWORK HELPED IMPROVE THE US STATISTICAL SYSTEM?. Journal of Survey Statistics and Methodology. (DOI:10.1093/jssam/smy023)
• Lars Vilhuber. (2018). Relaunching the Journal of Privacy and Confidentiality. Journal of Privacy and Confidentiality, 8(1). (DOI:10.29012/jpc.706)
• Aleksandra Slavković, & Lars Vilhuber. (2018). Remembering Stephen Fienberg. Journal of Privacy and Confidentiality, 8(1). (DOI:10.29012/jpc.685)
• Lars Vilhuber, & Carl Lagoze. (2017). Making Confidential Data Part of Reproducible Research.
• Julie Cloutier, Lars Vilhuber, Denis Harrison, & Vanessa Béland-Ouellette. (2016). Understanding the effect of procedural justice on psychological distress . International Journal of Stress Management , Advance online. (DOI:10.1037/str0000065)
• Lars Vilhuber, Jörg Drechsler. 2014. A first step towards a German SynLBD: Constructing a German Longitudinal Business Database, Statistical Journal of the IAOS . 30(2):137-142. (DOI:10.3233/SJI-140812)
• Lars Vilhuber, Jarmin Miranda. 2014. Looking back on three years of using the Synthetic LBD Beta , Statistical Journal of the IAOS . 30(2):123-127. (DOI:10.3233/SJI-140811)
• Carl Lagoze, William C Block, Jeremy Williams, John Abowd, Lars Vilhuber. 2013. Data Management of Confidential Data, International Journal of Digital Curation . 8(1):265-278. (DOI:10.2218/ijdc.v8i1.259)
• John Abowd, Matthew J Schneider, Lars Vilhuber. 2013. Differential Privacy Applications to Bayesian and Linear Mixed Model Estimation, Journal of Privacy and Confidentiality . 5(1):Art. 4.
• John Abowd, Lars Vilhuber, William C Block. 2012. A Proposed Solution to the Archiving and Curation of Confidential Scientific Inputs, Privacy in Statistical Databases . LNCS 7556:216–225. (DOI:10.1007/978-3-642-33627-0_17)
• John Abowd, Lars Vilhuber. 2012. Did the Housing Price Bubble Clobber Local Labor Markets When It Burst?, American Economic Review . 102(3):589-93. (DOI:10.1257/aer.102.3.589)
• Lars Vilhuber, John Abowd. 2011. Science, Confidentiality, and the Public Interest , Chance . 24(3):5.
• John Abowd, Lars Vilhuber. 2011. National Estimates of Gross Employment and Job Flows from the Quarterly Workforce Indicators with Demographic and Industry Detail, Journal of Econometrics . 161:82-99.
• Lars Vilhuber, Julie Cloutier. 2008. Procedural justice criteria in salary determination, Journal of Managerial Psychology . 23(6). (DOI:10.1108/02683940810894765)
• John Abowd, Lars Vilhuber. 2005. The Sensitivity of Economic Statistics to Coding Errors in Personal Identifiers, Journal of Business and Economic Statistics . 23(2):133-152.
• Lars Vilhuber, Harry Holzer, Julia Lane. 2004. Escaping poverty for low-wage workers: The role of employer characteristics and changes, Industrial and Labor Relations Review . 57(4):560-578.(DOI:10.2307/4126683)
• Lars Vilhuber, David N Margolis, Véronique Simonnet. 2001. Early Career Experiences and Later Career Outcomes: Comparing the United States, France and Germany, Quarterly Journal of Economic Research . 70(1):31-38.
• Lars Vilhuber. 2001. La spécificité de la formation en milieu de travail: un survol des contributions théoriques et empiriques récentes, L’Actualité économique, Revue d’analyse économique . 77(1).
• Lars Vilhuber. 1999. Continuous Training and Sectoral Mobility in Germany, Evidence from the 90s, Quarterly Journal of Economic Research . (2).

Book Chapters

• John Abowd, Ian M. Schmutte, & Lars Vilhuber. (2021). Disclosure Limitation and Confidentiality Protection in Linked Data. Wiley.
• Ian Schmutte, & Lars Vilhuber. (2021). Balancing Privacy and Data Usability: An Overview of Disclosure Avoidance Methods. In Handbook on Using Administrative Data for Research and Evidence-Based Policy. Abdul Latif Jameel Poverty Action Lab.
• Jim Shen, & Lars Vilhuber. (2021). Physically Protecting Sensitive Data. In Handbook on Using Administrative Data for Research and Evidence-Based Policy. Abdul Latif Jameel Poverty Action Lab.
• Lars Vilhuber. (2019). View from Academia: Making Confidential Data Part of Reproducible Research. In Methods to Foster Transparency and Reproducibility of Federal Statistics. (pp. 63-66). The National Academies Press.
• Lars Vilhuber. 2009. Adjusting imperfect data: Overview and case studies. in Wage Structure, Raises and Mobility: International Comparisons of the Structure of Wages Within and Across Firms. University of Chicago Press, 2009. Edward P Lazear, Kathryn L Shaw.
• Lars Vilhuber, John Abowd, Fredrik Andersson, Kevin L McKinney, Marc Roemer, Bryce E Stephens, Simon Woodcock. 2009. The LEHD Infrastructure Files and the Creation of the Quarterly Workforce Indicators. in Producer Dynamics: New Evidence from Micro Data. University of Chicago Press, 2009. Timothy Dunne, J Bradford Jensen, Mark J Roberts.
• Lars Vilhuber, John Abowd, Kevin L McKinney. 2009. The link between human capital, mass layoffs, and firm deaths. in Producer Dynamics: New Evidence from Micro Data. University of Chicago Press, 2009. Timothy Dunne, J Bradford Jensen, Mark J Roberts.
• Lars Vilhuber, Lisa Dragoset. 2008. How Did Universal Primary Education Affect Returns to Education and Labor Market Participation in Uganda. in Youth in Africa’s Labor Market. Washington, DC, United States: World Bank, 2008. Marito Garcia, Jean Farès.
• Lars Vilhuber, David N Margolis, Erik Plug, Véronique Simonnet. 2004. Early Career Experiences and Later Career Outcomes: An International Comparison. in Human Capital Over The Life Cycle - A European Perspective. London, United Kingdom: Edward Elgar, 2004. Catherine Sofer. (90-117)

Books

• Shawn Cole, Iqbal Dhaliwal, Anja Sautmann, & Lars Vilhuber. (2021). Handbook on Using Administrative Data for Research and Evidence-Based Policy. Abdul Latif Jameel Poverty Action Lab.

Research Reports

• Lars Vilhuber, Miklos Kóren, Joan Llull, Marie Connolly, & Peter Morrow. (2020). A template README for social science replication packages.
• Lars Vilhuber, Charles Bérubé, & Benoit Dostie. (2013). Estimation de la contribution de la réallocation de la main-d'oeuvre à la croissance de la productivité au Canada.
• Sarah von Schrader, William Erickson, Lars Vilhuber, & Thomas P Golden. (2012). Disability and Employment Status Report (Reports for 60 NY counties).

Conference Proceedings

• Samuel Haney, Ashwin Machanavajjhala, John Abowd, Matthew Graham, Mark Kutzbach, Lars Vilhuber. 2017. Utility Cost of Formal Privacy for Releasing National Employer-Employee Statistics. SIGMOD 2017, 2017. (Accepted)
• Lars Vilhuber, Jörg Drechsler. 2014. Synthetic Longitudinal Business Databases for International Comparisons. in Lecture Notes in Computer Science. Berlin, Germany: Springer, 2014. Domingo-Ferrer, Josep .
• Lars Vilhuber, Javier Miranda. 2014. Using Partially Synthetic Data to Replace Suppression in the Business Dynamics Statistics: Early Results. in Lecture Notes in Computer Science. Berlin, Germany: Springer, 2014. Domingo-Ferrer, Josep .
• Lars Vilhuber, Carl Lagoze, Jeremy Williams. 2013. Encoding Provenance Metadata for Social Science Datasets. in Communications in Computer and Information Science. Berlin, Germany: Springer LNCS Proceedings, 2013. xx. (12)(Accepted)
• John Abowd, Kaj Gittings, Kevin L. McKinney, Bryce E. Stephens, Lars Vilhuber, Simon Woodcock. 2012. Dynamically Consistent Noise Infusion and Partially Synthetic Data As Confidentiality Protection Measures for Related Time-series. in 2012 Research Conference. Washington, DC, United States: Federal Committee on Statistical Methodology, 2012. (40)
• Lars Vilhuber, Ashwin Machanavajjhala, Daniel Kifer, John Abowd, Johannes Gehrke. 2008. Privacy: Theory Meets Practice on the Map. International Conference on Data Engineering (ICDE), 2008.
• John Abowd, Ashwin Machanavajjhala, Daniel Kifer, Johannes Gehrke, Lars Vilhuber. 2008. Privacy: Theory Meets Practice on the Map. International Conference on Data Engineering (ICDE), 2008. (277-286)
• Lars Vilhuber, John Abowd. 2008. How Protective Are Synthetic Data. in Privacy in Statistical Databases: Proceedings of the UNESCO Chair in Data Privacy International Conference PSD2008. Springer Lecture Notes in Computer Science, 2008. (239-246)

Selected Works

Selected Works is a service of BePress Publishing that helps readers follow a scholar's most current work. View Selected Works of Lars Vilhuber

ECON Courses - Spring 2025

• ECON 7851 : Third Year Research Seminar II

ECON Courses - Fall 2025

• ECON 7850 : Third Year Research Seminar