Does the Role Model Encourage Female Labor Force Participation? Field Experiment in Bangladesh

Last registered on March 18, 2021
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Pre-Trial

Trial Information

General Information

Title
Does the Role Model Encourage Female Labor Force Participation? Field Experiment in Bangladesh
RCT ID
AEARCTR-0004940
Initial registration date
November 20, 2019

Initial registration date is when the trial was registered.

It corresponds to when the registration was submitted to the Registry to be reviewed for publication.

First published
November 20, 2019, 2:52 PM EST

First published corresponds to when the trial was first made public on the Registry after being reviewed.

Last updated
March 18, 2021, 4:53 PM EDT

Last updated is the most recent time when changes to the trial's registration were published.

Locations

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Primary Investigator

Name
Momoe Makino
Affiliation
Institute of Developing Economies
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Other Primary Investigator(s)

PI Name
Zaki Wahhaj
PI Affiliation
University of Kent
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PI Name
Abu Shonchoy
PI Affiliation
Florida International University
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Additional Trial Information

Status
On going
Start date
2019-09-01
End date
2024-03-31
Keywords
Gender, Labor
Additional Keywords
Role model, Information, Intrahousehold decision-making
JEL code(s)
D83, D91, J16, J29, O53, Z13
Secondary IDs
Abstract
Enhancing female labor force participation is considered key to economic growth, poverty alleviation, and women’s empowerment. Despite its importance both at the national and household/individual levels, the female labor force participation rate remains low in South Asian countries. It has been a great interest for researchers and policy makers how to enhance female labor force participation in these countries. We investigate whether providing unmarried young women and their parents with information about working conditions through the role model working women encourages unmarried young women’s labor force participation in rural Bangladesh, and if so, how. For this objective, we conduct the randomized controlled trial.
External Link(s)

Registration Citation

Citation
Makino, Momoe, Abu Shonchoy and Zaki Wahhaj. 2021. "Does the Role Model Encourage Female Labor Force Participation? Field Experiment in Bangladesh." AEA RCT Registry. March 18. https://doi.org/10.1257/rct.4940-2.0
Sponsors & Partners

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Experimental Details

Interventions

Intervention(s)
Intervention Start Date
2020-11-06
Intervention End Date
2021-07-11

Primary Outcomes

Primary Outcomes (end points)
Motivational session take-up, Voucher take-up, Physical approach to the formal vocational center to enroll at the program, Take-up (enrollment) of the vocational training, Vocational training program completion/discontinuation/drop-out, Work for payment, Migration
Primary Outcomes (explanation)

Secondary Outcomes

Secondary Outcomes (end points)
Secondary Outcomes (explanation)

Experimental Design

Experimental Design
The objective of the experiment is to encourage young unmarried girls aged 15-29 to participate in labor force by introducing them to the role model women. Eligible girls (or with parents) are offered the opportunity to receive an interactive motivational information session given by the role model women who belong to the same community (e.g., the same socioeconomic background within the upazila) as the eligible girls. We hire two role model women for each session: i) women who are currently working in the garment factory, and ii) self-employed women as a tailor. Among the two treatment villages, the enrollment fee at the formal training program is fully paid if the eligible girl wins the lottery (computer-based randomization). The probability of winning the lottery is either 75% or 25% at the village level.
Experimental Design Details
Not available
Randomization Method
Randomization done in office by a computer
Randomization Unit
village-level randomization
Was the treatment clustered?
Yes

Experiment Characteristics

Sample size: planned number of clusters
150 villages
Sample size: planned number of observations
1,500 households
Sample size (or number of clusters) by treatment arms
50 villages control, 50 villages girl only role model session, 50 villages girl and parents role model session
Minimum detectable effect size for main outcomes (accounting for sample design and clustering)
Assume that when the reservation wage is below the offered wage, the girl joins the labor force, and the offered wage distribution is the same as the current wage distribution, i.e., according to the pilot survey, the mean is BDT 5,250, and the standard deviation is BDT 2,693. Further assume that reservation wage distribution is equal to the current wage distribution minus one standard deviation. To maintain the 90% statistical power, the minimum sample size is 1,304.
Supporting Documents and Materials
IRB

Institutional Review Boards (IRBs)

IRB Name
Institute of Developing Economies, Japan External Trade Organization
IRB Approval Date
2019-07-10
IRB Approval Number
RPA190710003
Analysis Plan