AEA RCT Registry currently lists 8565 studies with locations in 167 countries.
In recent years, economists have been increasingly interested in identifying how religion mediates economic development. Individuals’ religious beliefs shape their worldview and thereby interplays with many economic outcomes, from basic consumption to entrepreneurship to how people respond to policies. Thus, understanding whether or how different beliefs shape economic behavior is instrumental for policy makers and researchers to foster economic development. This question is particularly pertinent for economic development in Sub-Saharan Africa, where the growth of Pentecostal and Charismatic churches mark a major shift in the religious landscape. Pentecostalism is thought to instill greater aspirations, hope, and trust in individuals, all factors that economists have identified as key c...
The effect of relative performance feedback, especially ordinal rank feedback, on performance has been broadly discussed in recent decades. However, there are few studies on the relationship between the impacts of providing relative performance feedback and the choice of comparison groups. We conjecture that splitting a large comparison group into multiple smalls can improve the motivational effects of providing rank feedback. We will conduct a field experiment in a high school to test whether giving rank feedback can motivate individuals and whether the motivational effects tend to be enhanced in small reference groups.
We study how much individuals are willing to pay for different news articles depending on group identities. We also examine the implications of news avoidance and news exposure on attitudes and beliefs.
Schistosomiasis, the second most socioeconomically-burdensome neglected tropical disease globally, is caused by snail-transmitted flatworms that penetrate human skin. It originates in the aquatic ecology of rural communities, defies control efforts, reinforces poverty, and damages children’s health and education advancement because even when provided drugs to clear the infections, humans quickly get re-infected when they return to snail-infested waterbodies. A newly-identified solution synergistically leverages feedback in socio-environmental systems through targeted aquatic vegetation harvest at community water access points where most infections occur (Rohr et al., Nature, 2023). The next challenge is how to scale and sustain that solution. If successful, the low-cost, information-bas...
Improving agricultural productivity is crucial for reducing poverty and strengthening food security. Over the past two decades, however, global agricultural productivity growth has slowed, primarily due to stagnation in developing countries (Fuglie et al., 2020). In these regions, challenges such as informational constraints, inadequate infrastructure, and limited governmental capacity to provide effective extension services have hindered the adoption of profitable technologies. Additionally, improper practices among farmers when adopting new technologies have further impeded agricultural growth. Our study focuses on enhancing fertilizer application in Nepal through a randomized controlled trial, aiming to improve agricultural practices and, subsequently, boost productivity and income. ...
The majority of refugees globally have limited access to local labor markets due to legal restrictions and high unemployment in many of the low and middle-income countries hosting them. In this project, we investigate the promise of randomized remote work training and professional mentorship in increasing access to online work opportunities for refugees, often economically and geographically marginalized. The interventions aim to lift informational, logistical, behavioral, and cultural barriers to remote work adoption and success. First stage outcomes of interest include take-up and participation in the training and mentorship sessions, knowledge and skills, activity on online work platforms, and human capital investments. Second stage outcomes of interest include employment online an...
The use of Large Language Models (LLM) could have a profound impact on the labor market. There is already extensive research on the impact of AI automation on existing jobs, but little is known about the use of LLMs and AI tools on the selection process leading to new hires. For entry level positions, applicants are usually required to submit a CV and a cover letter in order to send a signal to the new employer about their skills. Writing a good cover letter that impresses an employer requires time and effort, and was traditionally interpreted as an effective way to send a signal about applicants’ relevant skills and motivation for the job. However, with the emergence of LLMs, writing a good quality cover letter has become much easier, and hence cover letters are a less reliable signal ...
Poor mental health among displaced populations is a widespread problem. Even where mental health (MH) care is available, uptake is limited by fear of stigma, and shame as well as by informational and language barriers. This randomized controlled experiment evaluates an anti-stigma intervention at scale implemented through social media promoting mental health uptake in a vulnerable population. The intervention focuses on Ukrainian refugees in Germany, a large group of displaced individuals with extensive access to digital services, and in a context where both cost and language barriers to access mental health support services are low. The study aims to test the impact of alternative messaging and dissemination strategies to increase the uptake of formal MH care. More specifically, the e...
Ghanaians in rural, poor and difficult to reach communities face major disparities when it comes to access to electricity: 27% of households lack access, five times higher than rates in urban areas. Ghana launched the Solar Lantern Promotion Program (SLPP) in 2013 to increase access to modern, affordable, and dependable energy services by replacing kerosene lanterns with solar lanterns. Consequently, expanding the SLPP’s subsidy model to meet the distribution goals for 2030 must begin with an evaluation of beneficiaries’ willingness to pay for solar lanterns. However, research on willingness to pay for solar lanterns, and the effects of sensitization and favorable payment options, remains limited. This project seeks to answer the following questions: 1. How much are Ghanaians in tar...
The Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2019 (Pub. L. 116-6) and the Further Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2020 (Pub. L. 116-94) authorized HUD to implement and evaluate the Community Choice Demonstration. As described in the Federal Register Notice Docket Number FR-6191-N-01, HUD is implementing a multi-site randomized controlled trial (RCT) to test and evaluate the effectiveness of the Demonstration. The primary purposes of the Demonstration are to provide voucher assistance and mobility-related services to families with children to encourage such families to move to lower-poverty areas, to expand their access to opportunity areas, and to evaluate the effectiveness of the strategies pursued under the Demonstration (AEARCTR-0009805). The Mobility Opportunity Vouchers to Eliminate D...