Bocconi Researchers Win Over 2.7m Euros for Ten Research Projects Funded by the Italian Government
From using artificial intelligence to study the behavior of legal actors to preventing falls among the elderly, and from the relationship between inequality and macroeconomics to supporting mental health in communities. Bocconi is involved in ten projects under the PRIN 2026 and PRIN Hybrid calls for proposals, for a total of 2,762,546 euros in funding from the Italian Ministry of University and Research.
PRIN (Progetti di Rilevante Interesse Nazionale) support basic research. The PRIN Hybrid call for proposals emphasizes a specific aspect: the integration of expertise from different fields, promoting dialogue between the humanities, social sciences, and technical-scientific disciplines, including through the use of innovative technologies. While both programs fund basic research, Hybrid places interdisciplinary collaboration at the center as a fundamental component of the projects.
In the 2026 PRIN program, Bocconi University is serving as the national coordinator for five projects and is participating in two others as a local unit. In the PRIN Hybrid program, three projects in which the university participates as a local unit are receiving funding, all of which are affiliated with CERGAS.
PRIN 2026: Five projects coordinated by Bocconi
Luca Enriques, through Synthetic Law, will develop an infrastructure to study the behavior of legal actors using synthetic counterparts, built and validated based on real documents and decisions. The goal is to create controlled environments in which to analyze responses to different rules, arguments, and incentives.
Alexia Delfino coordinates MH-CONNECT, which will investigate how teachers, community workers, parents, and other non-specialists can contribute to mental well-being. Seven experimental evaluations in seven different countries will also examine the effects on education, employment, and social inclusion.
Through KNOWFRAG, Gianmarco Ottaviano will study how geoeconomic fragmentation is transforming the international flow of knowledge and the strategies of multinational corporations, linking networks of innovation, investment, and trade.
Nicolas Serrano Velarde will lead ADOPT-EU, a project dedicated to examining why European companies adopt new technologies at different rates. The project will analyze the role of credit, governance, skills, and access to external knowledge.
Hannes Wagner, through COSFIM, will examine how boards of directors, ownership structures, and shareholder engagement influence companies’ transition toward sustainability and its consequences for financial markets.
PRIN 2026: two participations as a local unit
Nicola Pavoni is the head of the Bocconi unit on AI, economic agents, and the future of markets. The research will examine how artificial intelligence influences individual decision-making and market functioning, assessing when it enhances human judgment and when it may amplify errors.
Roberto Perotti is the head of the Macroeconomics and INEquality – MINE unit, which will develop new datasets to analyze the relationships between income and wealth distribution, macroeconomic dynamics, and economic shocks in the United States and Europe.
PRIN Hybrid: three local units involved in health research
Amelia Compagni heads the Bocconi unit of KAIROS, which will study the role of time in breast cancer care, integrating its biological, organizational, and experiential dimensions as experienced by patients and healthcare professionals.
Giovanni Fattore is the head of the SPICE-CC unit, which is dedicated to using advanced tissue imaging techniques to improve the assessment of recurrence risk in cervical cancer.
Francesco Longo will lead the Digi-FALLS unit, which will integrate digital biomarkers, artificial intelligence, wearable technologies, and personalized interventions to prevent falls and support the independence of older adults.