Haizhen Mou PhD, MA, BA

Haizhen Mou's primary research interests include fiscal policy, fiscal federalism, health policy and social policy. Her research often takes a political economy and interdisciplinary perspective. She received five SSHRC grants and several other awards as the principal investigator. Her recent co-authored book “Fiscal Choices: Canada After the Pandemic” was shortlisted for the 2024-25 Donner Prize – the award for the best public policy book by a Canadian.

Download Haizhen Mou's abridged CV.

Designations

• PhD, Carleton University 
• MA, York University
• MA, Beijing Normal University
• BA, Tianjin University of Commerce

Haizhen Mou is currently accepting applications for a new MPP student position starting in September 2027 in the following research areas: public finance, gender norms.

Grants

• Principal Investigator, May 2026 – April 2027. Saskatchewan Health Research Foundation, (SHRF), Align Grant, $10,000. Project: “Aligning the Evaluation of Patient Medical Homes with Real World Needs in Saskatchewan”. Post-doctoral fellow: Coralie Darcis.
• Co-Principal Investigator, April 2026 – March 2031. Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council of Canada (SSHRC), Insight Grant, $473,500. Project: “Advancing proximity planning in Canada: Integrating policy making, proximity behaviour and perception, and the use of the 15-Minute City framework.” Lead Principal Investigator: Ehab Diab.
• Principal Investigator, March 2025 – Feb. 2026. Saskatchewan Health Research Foundation (SHRF), Solutions - Innovation Grant, $50,000. “Improving Access to Primary Care in Rural Saskatchewan: Evaluating the Implementation of Two Pilot Patient Medical Home Models”. Post-doctoral fellow: Coralie Darcis.
• Principal Investigator, April 2024 – March 2029. Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council of Canada (SSHRC), Insight Grant, $308,304. Project: “Universal Childcare and Immigrant Women’s Labour Outcomes.” Co-Applicants: Ehab Diab and Akram Mahani.
• Principal Investigator, March 2024 – Feb. 2026. Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council of Canada (SSHRC), Partnership Engage Grant: Generating Evidence for Public Health Decision, $25,000. Project: “Advancing Socio-Economic Research for Evidence-Informed Public Health Decision-Making: An Evaluation of the 2017 Bilateral Agreements on Mental Healthcare.” Partner: Canadian Mental Health Association. Collaborator: Leyna S. Lowe.
• Principal Investigator, May 2024 – April 2025. Saskatchewan Health Research Foundation (SHRF), Align Grant. $10,000. Project: “Toward a Patient Medical Home Model of Care: A Study of the Role of Nurses”. Co-Applicants: Emmett Harrison, Tara Lee and Curtis Newton. Post-doctoral fellow: Coralie Darcis.
• Principal Investigator, April 2019 – March 2024, SSHRC, Insight Grant, $170,715. Project: “Fiscal Governance in the Canadian Provinces”. Co-applicant: Michael M. Atkinson. Collaborators: Scott D. Cameron, Judy Ferguson, Mark Hallerberg and Yilin Hou.

Selected Recent Refereed Articles

• Haizhen Mou and Whitney Loerzel*. Forthcoming. “Allocation, Aging Population and Accountability: The Case for a Modified Canada Health Transfer.” Canadian Public Policy.
• Coralie Darcis*, Emmett Harrison and Haizhen Mou. 2026. “Advancing Team-Based Care in Private Practices: A Case Study of a Public–Private Hybrid Model.” BMC Health Service Research Vol. 26, 1363. Open Access.
• Whitney Loerzel*, Leyna Lowe, and Haizhen Mou. 2026. “Reporting and Accountability: An Assessment of the 2017 Bilateral Agreements in Canada.” Healthcare Policy 21(4): 82 – 94.
• Coralie Darcis*, Marc-André Pigeon and Haizhen Mou. 2025. “Family Physicians’ Power and Team-Based Care: Lessons From a 60-year-old Primary Care Clinic.” Social Science & Medicine. Vol. 383, 118248. Open Access.
• Stephanie Ortynsky*, Marwa Farag and Haizhen Mou. 2025. “Factors Facilitating the Adoption of Wellbeing Budgets in New Zealand: A Case Study with Budget Actors.” Journal of Public Policy 45(3): 449 – 473.
• Maritza Lozano Man Hing* and Haizhen Mou. 2025. “The Office of the Auditor General as a “Trusted Partner” of Government: Assessing the CERB and CEWS Audits.” Canadian Public Administration 68(1): 24 – 40. Open Access
• Clinton Mahoney*, Yang Yang, Mike Jordan, Donald Gilchrist and Haizhen Mou. 2025. “Competing for Business: Non-Residential Property Tax Policies in Saskatoon.” Canadian Public Administration 68(1): 63 – 82.
• Maritza Lozano Man Hing*, Michael Atkinson and Haizhen Mou. 2023. “Democratic Accountability in Times of Crisis: Executive Power, Fiscal Policy, and COVID-19.” Government and Opposition 58(1): 39 – 60.
• Haizhen Mou and Maritza Lozano Man Hing*. 2021. “Stringency of Balanced Budget Laws and Transparency of Budgeting Process.” Public Budgeting & Finance 41:45 – 64.

Refereed Books

• Michael M. Atkinson and Haizhen Mou. 2024. Fiscal Choices: Canada After the Pandemic. University of Toronto Press. Shortlisted for the 2024-25 Donner Prize – The award for the best public policy book by a Canadian.
• Daniel Béland, André Lecours, Gregory P. Marchildon, Haizhen Mou, and Rose Olfert (author names are listed in alphabetical order). 2017. Fiscal Federalism and Equalization Policy in Canada: Political and Economic Dimensions. University of Toronto Press.

Non-Refereed Articles

• Michael M. Atkinson and Haizhen Mou. April 21, 2025. “Fiscal Choices takes a sober look at economic dimensions of pandemic.” The Hill Times
• Michael M. Atkinson and Haizhen Mou. July 2024. “What to do about intergenerational wealth inequality”. Policy Options.
• Michael M. Atkinson and Haizhen Mou. April 2024. “Economic growth tops the priority list for Canadian policymakers — here’s why”. The Conversation.
• Haizhen Mou. May 6, 2021. “Canada Health Transfer: Background and future”. Intergovernmental Fiscal Relations Commission (IFRC) What Now series. IFRC and Canada West Foundation. https://cwf.ca/research/publications/what-now-canada-health-transfer-background-and-future/

Compiled Dataset

• Haizhen Mou and Maritza Lozano Man Hing. 2023. Stringency and Transparency Indices of Fiscal Rules in Canada, 1980-2021 (Download the Data Set). University of Saskatchewan.

• Childcare policy
• Fiscal federalism
• Healthcare models

• JSGS 803 Quantitative Method and Research Design, Fall 2026
• JSGS 802 Public Finance, Winter 2026