Unintended consequences of rewards for student attendance: Results from a field experiment in Indian classrooms

In an experiment in non-formal schools in Indian slums, a reward scheme for attending a target number of school days increased average attendance when the scheme was in place, but had heterogeneous effects after it was removed. Among students with high baseline attendance, the incentive had no effect on attendance after it was discontinued, and test scores were unaffected. Among students with low baseline attendance, the incentive lowered post-incentive attendance, and test scores decreased. For these students, the incentive was also associated with lower interest in school material and lower optimism and confidence about their ability. This suggests incentives might have unintended long-term consequences for the very students they are designed to help the most

Impacto do programa bolsa família sobre a frequência escolar: o caso da agricultura familiar no Nordeste do Brasil.

O objetivo deste trabalho é avaliar o impacto do programa de transferência de renda condicionada Bolsa Família sobre a frequência escolar de crianças e adolescentes de cinco a 14 anos na agricultura familiar dos estados de Pernambuco, Ceará, Sergipe e Paraíba. Nessa investigação, o trabalho faz uso de dados primários (pesquisa de campo) e dados secundários (PNAD, 2005) para obter estimativas de propensity score. Os resultados indicam que, de forma geral, o programa eleva a frequência escolar das referidas crianças no intervalo de 5,4 a 5,9 pontos percentuais. Contudo, há importantes diferenças quando se considera meninas e meninos separadamente, sendo o programa eficaz no primeiro caso e ineficaz no segundo. Ou seja, apesar da avaliação positiva para as meninas, não parece haver efeito do programa sobre a frequência escolar dos meninos, o que pode estar associado a diferenças de gênero nos custos de oportunidades do investimento em capital humano no meio rural

Viewpoint: Estimating the causal effects of policies and programs

Estimation, inference and interpretation of the causal effects of programs and policies have all advanced dramatically over the past 25 years. We highlight three particularly important intellectual trends: an improved appreciation of the substantive importance of heterogeneous responses and of their methodological implications, a stronger focus on internal validity brought about by the “credibility revolution,” and the scientific value that follows from grounding estimation and interpretation in economic theory. We discuss a menu of commonly employed partial equilibrium approaches to the identification of causal effects, emphasizing that the researcher’s central intellectual contribution always consists of making an explicit case for a specific causal interpretation given the relevant economic theory, the data, the institutional context and the economic question of interest. We also touch on the importance of general equilibrium effects and full cost–benefit analyses.RésuméPoint de vue: Sur l’estimation des effets causatifs des politiques et programmes. Dans le monde de l’estimation, l’inférence et l’interprétation des effets causatifs des programmes et des politiques, il y a eu des progrès dramatiques au cours des derniers 25 ans. Les auteurs soulignent trois tendances intellectuelles particulièrement importantes : une appréciation améliorée de l’importance substantielle des réponses hétérogènes et de leur importance méthodologique, une focalisation plus robuste sur la validité interne engendrée par la « révolution de la crédibilité », et la valeur scientifique qui découle d’un ancrage de l’estimation et de l’interprétation dans la théorie économique. On discute un éventail d’approches d’équilibre partiel à l’identification des effets causatifs, mettant au premier plan que la contribution intellectuelle centrale du chercheur consiste à bâtir un argumentaire explicite pour une interprétation causale spécifique compte tenu de la théorie économique pertinente, des données, du contexte institutionnel, et de la question économique d’intérêt. On mentionne aussi l’importance des effets d’équilibre général et des analyses de tous les coûts et avantages.Peer Reviewedhttp://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/134884/1/caje12217.pdfhttp://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/134884/2/caje12217_am.pd

Effects of Regular Off-farm Activities on Household Agri-cultural Income: Evidence from Kenya’s Kerio Valley

This paper contributes to clarifying the scientific debate on whether off-farm activities hurt or help agricultural income. The main purpose of this research is to estimate the impacts of rural household’s participation in regular off-farm activities on agricultural income. The literature indicates that off-farm activities affect rural household’s income but studies on their effect on agricultural income have remained largely inconclusive. Determining how off farm activities affect agricultural income is highly relevant for the decisions of poor rural households and policy makers to allocate resources efficiently and increase investment to combat povert

Fertility and economic instability: the role of unemployment and job displacement

In this paper, we study the separate effects of unemployment and job displacement on fertility in a sample of white collar women in Austria. Using an instrumental variable approach, we show that unemployment incidence as such has no negative effect on fertility decisions, but the very fact of being displaced from a career-oriented job has. Fertility rates for women affected by a firm closure are significantly below those of a control group, even after 6 years, and this is so irrespective of the incidence or the duration of the associated unemployment spell

The impact of economic recession on maternal and infant mortality: lessons from history

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>The effect of the recent world recession on population health has featured heavily in recent international meetings. Maternal health is a particular concern given that many countries were already falling short of their MDG targets for 2015.</p> <p>Methods</p> <p>We utilise 20^thcentury time series data from 14 high and middle income countries to investigate associations between previous economic recession and boom periods on maternal and infant outcomes (1936 to 2005). A first difference logarithmic model is used to investigate the association between short run fluctuations in GDP per capita (individual incomes) and changes in health outcomes. Separate models are estimated for four separate time periods.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>The results suggest a modest but significant association between maternal and infant mortality and economic growth for early periods (1936 to 1965) but not more recent periods. Individual country data display markedly different patterns of response to economic changes. Japan and Canada were vulnerable to economic shocks in the post war period. In contrast, mortality rates in countries such as the UK and Italy and particularly the US appear little affected by economic fluctuations.</p> <p>Conclusions</p> <p>The data presented suggest that recessions do have a negative association with maternal and infant outcomes particularly in earlier stages of a country's development although the effects vary widely across different systems. Almost all of the 20 least wealthy countries have suffered a reduction of 10% or more in GDP per capita in at least one of the last five decades. The challenge for today's policy makers is the design and implementation of mechanisms that protect vulnerable populations from the effects of fluctuating national income.</p