Julie Nelson Quoted in ABC News

Professor and Department Chair of Economics Julie Nelson was quoted in an article on ABCNews.com Monday.

Professor Nelson is reported as disputing the findings of a recent set of papers claiming to find evidence of a "Lipstick Effect" whereby women spend more on beauty products during recessions in order to attract men.

Professor Nelson suggests that the paper "claims to find that spending more on beauty-enhancing products during recessions is an aspect of "women's psychology'' and strongly suggests that this is an evolved response to competition for mates in hard times.

"The first part of this is a gross over-generalization, while the second is speculative," she said.