Papers

Publications and working papers by BIG Lab affiliated faculty and graduate students:

Author Title Date Status
Santosh Kumar Gautam The effects of childhood immunization programs on health and education: micro-evidence from India Jul 01, 2026 Publication
Danice Guzman, Wyatt Brooks, Aloysius Byaruhanga, Joseph Kaboski , Marie Nakitende, Juliet Nambuubi, Jackline Oluoch-Aridi, and Francis Ssekijjo Community lending with external capital: evidence from a randomised evaluation in Uganda May 20, 2026 Publication
Coleson Weir Education, marriage, and banning female genital cutting: evidence from Benin May 09, 2026 Publication
Morgan Hardy, Isaac Mbiti, and Jamie McCasland Persistent Impacts of Improved Apprenticeship Training Quality May 01, 2026 Publication
Cynthia Bansak, Eva Dziadula, and Madeline Zavodny The role of coresident grandparents in the Asian-white maternal employment gap in the US Apr 25, 2026 Publication
Andrés Santos Vargas, Enrique Seira, and Alberto Simpse Satisfaction with democracy predicts democratic behaviors Apr 03, 2026 Publication
Catalina Amuedo-Dorantes and Eva Dziadula Does Granting Driving Privileges to Undocumented Immigrants Affect Fatal Hit-and-Runs? Mar 23, 2026 Publication
Benjamin Davis, Erdgin Mane, Leman Yonca Gurbuzer, Giulia Caivano, Natalia Piedrahita, Kate Schneider, Nimra Azhar, Marwan Benali, Nidhi Chaudhary, Rodrigo Rivera, Ramya Ambikapathi, Paul Winters, Veronica Boero, and Ester Laske A New Estimate For Global and Country-Level Employment in Agrifood Systems Mar 21, 2026 Publication
Eva Dziadula and Jorgen Harris NACARA: Does Amnesty Affect Marriages of Undocumented Immigrants? Mar 01, 2026 Publication
Alejandro Estefan US manufacturing reallocation: Impacts on Mexican labor markets Feb 07, 2026 Publication
Kathryn Baragwanath and Saad Gulzar Democracy and the Environment Feb 02, 2026 Publication
Julie Buhl-Wiggers, Jason T Kerwin, Ricardo Montero de la Piedra, Jeffrey Smith, and Rebecca Thornton Reading for life: Lasting impacts of a literacy intervention in Uganda Feb 01, 2026 Forthcoming
Miriam Golden, Saad Gulzar, and Luke Sonnet Political Responsiveness, Information Provision, and Capacity Gaps Jan 01, 2026 Publication
Alexander Fertig, Alexandra Hartman, Lakshmi Iyer , and Edmund Malesky A Field of Her Own: Property Rights and Women’s Agency in Myanmar Jan 01, 2026 Publication
Juliane Begenau, Saki Bigio, Jeremy Majerovitz, and Matias Vieyra A Q-Theory of Banks Jan 01, 2026 Publication
Miriam Golden, Saad Gulzar, and Luke Sonnet ‘Press 1 for Roads’: Bridging Communication Gaps in Political Representation” Jan 01, 2026 Forthcoming
Heitor S. Pellegrina and Sebastian Sotelo Migration, Specialization, and Trade: Evidence from Brazil’s March to the West Nov 13, 2025 Publication
Kaushalendra Kumar, Ashish Singh, Santosh Kumar Gautam, Abhishek Singh Calorie Consumption and Wages: Evidence from India’s Labor Market Nov 01, 2025 Publication
Alejandro Estefan Female Labour Force Participation, Family Planning Policies, and Fertility: Causal Evidence from Mexico Oct 24, 2025 Publication
Jailene Castillo, Christina Molinaro, William Pater, and Santosh Kumar Gautam Water Matters More: Unequal Effects of Water and Sanitation on Child Growth in Mozambique Oct 20, 2025 Publication
Santosh Kumar Gautam, Ermal llirjani, and Patralekha Ukil On the Road to a Better Life? Rural Road and Economic Development in Albania Oct 19, 2025 Publication
Stanislav Rabinovich, Brenda Samaniego de la Parra, and Ronald Wolthoff Wage Setting Protocols and Labor Market Conditions: Theory and Evidence Oct 08, 2025 Publication
Lakshmi Iyer and Coleson Weir The colonial legacy in India: How persistent are the effects of historical institutions? Oct 01, 2025 Publication
Alejandro Estefan, Romina Ordoñez, Cristina Parilli, and Paul Winters Hybrid agricultural extension and the adoption of climate-resilient varieties: Evidence from oil palm in the Amazon Oct 01, 2025 Publication
Latika Chaudhary and Lakshmi Iyer The Importance of Being Local? Administrative Decentralization and Human Development Sep 25, 2025 Publication
Sara G. Castellanos, Diego Jiménez-Hernández, Aprajit Mahajan, Eduardo Alcaraz Prous, and Enrique Seira Contract Terms, Employment Shocks, and Default in Credit Cards Sep 24, 2025 Publication
Bruce Wydick, Gianna Camacho, and Patrizio Piraino Hope Walks: The Impact of Clubfoot Treatment on Human Flourishing in Ethiopia Sep 18, 2025 Publication
Julie Buhl-Wiggers, Rebecca Thornton , and Irina Valenzuela Girls outperforming boys: Pre-school gender gap in literacy and numeracy skills in Sub-Saharan Africa Sep 16, 2025 Publication
Ariel Akerman, Jacob Moscona, Heitor S. Pellegrina, and Karthik Sastry Public R&D Meets Economic Development: Embrapa and Brazil’s Agricultural Revolution Sep 15, 2025 Working Paper
Cynthia Bansak, Eva Dziadula, and Sophie Xuefei Wang The Effect of Family Size on Intergenerational Support for Elderly Parents and Their Life Expectancy: Evidence from China’s ‘Later, Longer, Fewer’ Campaign Aug 16, 2025 Publication
Gemma Dipoppa and Saad Gulzar Air pollution could be reduced by incentivizing local government officials to control crop burning Aug 15, 2025 Publication
Farid Farrokhi, Elliot Kang, Heitor S. Pellegrina , and Sebastian Sotelo Deforestation: A Global and Dynamic Perspective Aug 01, 2025 Working Paper
Lakshmi Iyer , Coleson Weir , and Susan L. Ostermann Political Incumbents and India’s Electoral Redistricting: Evidence from Two States Aug 01, 2025 Working Paper
Savita Diggs and Taryn Dinkelman Age Heaping in African Census Data: Prevalence and Implications for Regression Discontinuity Research Designs Jul 31, 2025 Working Paper
Joyce Sadka, Enrique Seira, and Christopher Woodruff Accessing Higher Quality Justice Jul 29, 2025 Working Paper
A. Nilesh Fernando and Niharika Singh Regulation by Reputation? Intermediaries, Labor Abuses, and International Migration Jul 14, 2025 Publication
Lucas W. Davis, Shaun McRae, and Enrique Seira The Competitive Effects of Entry in Deregulated Mexican Gasoline Market Jul 14, 2025 Publication
Samuel Berlinski, Matias Busso, Taryn Dinkelman and Claudia Martínez A. Reducing parent-school information gaps and improving school outcomes: Evidence from high-frequency text messaging in Chile Jul 01, 2025 Publication
Irma Clots-Figueras & Lakshmi Iyer Gender and natural experiments in developing countries Jul 01, 2025 Publication
Santosh Gautam, Alasana Suno, Elizabeth Wood Effect of antenatal care on birth outcomes in the Gambia: A propensity score matching analysis Jun 18, 2025 Publication
A. Nilesh Fernando and Niharika Singh The Grass is Not Always Greener: The Effects of Local Labor Market Information on Search and Employment May 01, 2025 Working Paper
Michael Callen, Saad Gulzar, Ali Hasanain, Muhammad Yasir Khan, and Arman Rezaee Personalities and Public Sector Performance: Evidence from a Health Experiment in Pakistan Apr 01, 2025 Publication
Santosh Kumar Gautam, Monica Shandal, Ariel Zucker Connectivity and Rural Development: Examining India’s Rural Road Construction Scheme Mar 03, 2025 Working Paper
Alhagie Sowe, Elizabeth Wood, Santosh Kumar Gautam Maternal Anemia as a Predictor of Childhood Anemia: Evidence from Gambian Health Data Feb 28, 2025 Publication
Kenneth F. Greene, Erin L. Rossiter, Enrique Seira, and Alberto Simpser Interacting as equals reduces partisan polarization in Mexico Jan 08, 2025 Publication
Saad Gulzar, Durgesh Pathak, Sarah Thompson, and Aliz Tóth Can Party Elites Shape the Rank-and-File? Evidence from a Recruitment Experiment in India Jan 05, 2025 Publication
Alberto Ciancio, Fabrice Kämpfen, Hans-Peter Kohler, and Rebecca Thornton Surviving bad news: health information without treatment options Jan 03, 2025 Publication
Ari Bronsoler, Jonathan Gruber, and  Enrique Seira Private Sector Provision as an "Escape Valve": The Mexico Diabates Experiment Jan 01, 2025 Publication
Federico Huneeus, Joseph Kaboski, Mauricio Larrain, Sergio L Schmukler, and Mario Vera Crisis Credit, Employment Protection, Indebtedness, and Risk Dec 16, 2024 Working Paper
Saad Gulzar and Muhammad Yasir Khan  Good Politicians: Experimental Evidence on Motivations for Political Candidacy and Government Performance Dec 03, 2024 Publication
Julie Buhl-Wiggers, Jason T Kerwin, Jeffrey Smith, and Rebecca Thornton Learning More about Teachers: Estimating Teacher Value-Added and Treatment Effects on Teacher Value-Added in Northern Uganda Nov 28, 2024 Working Paper
Patrizio Piraino and Joanna Ryan The price of fairness: Experimental evidence on the limits to demand for redistribution Nov 01, 2024 Publication
Gemma Dipoppa and Saad Gulzar Bureaucrat Incentives Reduce Crop Burning and Child Mortality in South Asia Oct 23, 2024 Publication
Alejandro Estefan, Roberto Gerhard, Joseph P. Kaboski, Illenin O. Kondo, and Wei Qian Outsourcing Policy and Worker Outcomes: Causal Evidence from a Mexican Ban Oct 16, 2024 Working Paper
K. Mangal and Niharika Singh Gender Dynamics in Entry into Competitive Careers: Evidence from Indian Civil Services Oct 01, 2024 Working Paper
Jamie Bleck, Jacopo Bonan, Philippe Lemay-Boucher, Bassirou Sarr Drinking Tea with the Neighbors: Informal Clubs, General Trust, and Trustworthiness in Mali Sep 01, 2024 Publication
Francisco J. Buera, Joseph Kaboski, Martí Mestieri, and Daniel G. O’Connor The Stable Transformation Path Jul 14, 2024 Working Paper
Farrokhi, Farid, Ahmad Lashkaripour and Heitor Pellegrina Trade and technology adoption in distorted economies Jul 01, 2024 Publication
Priyasmita Ghosh and Rebecca Thornton The mother-in-law effect: Heterogeneous impacts of counseling on family planning take-up in Jordan Jun 18, 2024 Publication
Michael Callen, Saad Gulzar, Arman Rezaee, and Jacob N. Shapiro Extending the Formal State: The Case of Pakistan’s Frontier Crimes Regulation May 28, 2024 Publication
Joseph Kaboski, Jianyu Lu, Wei Qian, and Lixia Ren Melitz Meets Lewis: The Impacts of Roads on Structural Transformation and Businesses May 13, 2024 Working Paper
Taryn Dinkelman, Mark Collinson, Wayne Twine and Martin Wittenberg Leaping or creeping up the energy ladder? Technology adoption in rural African households May 10, 2024 Working Paper
Taryn Dinkelman, Grace Kumchulesi, Martine Mariotti International Migration Kickstarted Structural Transformation in Malawi May 08, 2024 Publication
Joseph P. Kaboski, Molly Lipscomb, Virgiliu Midrigan, and Carolyn Pelnik How Important are Investment Indivisibilities for Development? Experimental Evidence from Uganda May 01, 2024 Working Paper
Sonia Bhalotra, Irma Clots-Figueras, Lakshmi Iyer , Joseph Vecci Leader Identity and Coordination Mar 01, 2024 Publication
Tiago Cavalcanti, Joseph P. Kaboski, Bruno Martins, and Cezar Santos Financing Costs and Development Mar 01, 2024 Working Paper
Taryn Dinkelman, Grace Kumchulesi, Martine Mariotti Labor Migration, Capital Accumulation, and the Structure of Rural Labor Markets Feb 09, 2024 Publication
Wyatt Brooks, Danice Guzman, and Joseph Kaboski Capitalizing Village Economies Feb 01, 2024 Working Paper
Brenda Samaniego de la Parra, Andrea Otero-Cortes, and Leonardo Fabio Morales The labor market effects of facilitating social security contributions under part-time employment contracts: Evidence from Colombia Jan 12, 2024 Publication
Julie Buhl-Wiggers, Jason T Kerwin, Juan Muñoz-Morales, Jeffrey Smith, Rebecca Thornton Some children left behind: Variation in the effects of an educational intervention Jan 07, 2024 Publication
Gabriel Brown, Morgan Hardy, Isaac Mbiti, Jamie McCasland, and Isabelle Salcher Can Financial Incentives to Firms Improve Apprentice Training? Experimental Evidence from Ghana Jan 03, 2024 Publication
Brenda Samaniego de la Parra and León Fernández Bujanda Increasing the cost of informal employment: Evidence from Mexico Jan 01, 2024 Publication
A. Nilesh Fernando, Alison Lodermeier, Paul Shaloka The Domestic Effects of an International Migration Ban: Evidence from Sri Lanka Dec 05, 2023 Working Paper
A. Nilesh Fernando, Niharika Singh, Gabriel Tourek Hiring Frictions and the Promise of Online Job Portals: Evidence from India Dec 01, 2023 Publication
Yoichi Sugita, Kensuke Teshima, and Enrique Seira Assortative Matching of Exporters and Importers Nov 02, 2023 Publication
Alejandro Estefan, Marina Improta, Romina Ordoñez, Paul Winters Digital Training for Micro-Entrepreneurs: Experimental Evidence from Guatemala Sep 01, 2023 Publication
Roxana Elena Manea, Patrizio Piraino and Martina Viarengo Crime, inequality and subsidized housing: Evidence from South Africa Aug 01, 2023 Publication
Saad Gulzar , Apoorva Lal, and Benjamin Pasquale Representation and Forest Conservation: Evidence from India’s Scheduled Areas Jun 09, 2023 Publication
Farzana Afridi, Sisir Debnath, Taryn Dinkelman, Komal Sareen Time for Clean Energy? Cleaner Fuels and Women’s Time in Home Production May 01, 2023 Publication
Isaac Mbiti,  Mauricio Romero, and Youdi Schipper Designing Effective Teacher Performance Pay Programs:  Experimental Evidence from Tanzania Jan 07, 2023 Publication
Michael Callen, Saad Gulzar , Ali Hasanain, Muhammad Yasir Khan, and Arman Rezaee The Political Economy of Public Sector Absence Jan 05, 2023 Publication
Giacomo De Giorgi, Andres Drenik, and Enrique Seira The Extension of Credit with Non-excluive Contracts and Sequential Banking Jan 02, 2023 Publication
Joyce Sadka, Enrique Seira, and Christopher Woodruf Information and Bargaining through Agents: Experimental Evidence from Mexico's Labor Courts Jan 02, 2023 Publication
Joe Kaboski, Viva Bartkus, Wyatt Brooks, Carolyn Pelnik Big Fish in Thin Markets: Competing with the Middlemen to Increase Market Access in the Amazon Mar 01, 2022 Publication
Saad Gulzar,  Miguel R. Rueda, Nelson A. Ruiz Can Campaign Contribution Limits Curb the Influence of Money in Politics? Jan 10, 2022 Publication
John Cawley, Michael Daly, and Rebecca Thornton The effect of beverage taxes on youth consumption and body mass index: Evidence from Mauritius Jan 06, 2022 Publication
Saad Gulzar, Thomas S. Robinson, and Nelson A. Ruiz How Campaigns Respond to Ballot Position: A New Mechanism for Order Effects Jan 04, 2022 Publication
Isaac Mbiti and Danila Serra Health workers’ behavior, patient reporting and reputational concerns: lab-in-the-field experimental evidence from Kenya Jan 04, 2022 Publication
Taryn Dinkelman and L. Rachel Ngai Time Use and Gender in Africa in Times of Structural Transformation Jan 03, 2022 Publication
Cyrill Walters, Graeme G. Mehl, Patrizio Piraino , Jonathan D. Jansen, Samantha Kriger The impact of the pandemic-enforced lockdown on the scholarly productivity of women academics in South Africa Jan 03, 2022 Publication
Isabel Musse, Rebecca Thornton, and Dirgha Ghimire How do women learn they are pregnant? The introduction of clinics and pregnancy awareness in Nepal Jan 03, 2022 Publication
A. Nilesh Fernando, Alison Lodermeier Understanding Adverse Outcomes in Gulf Migration: Evidence from Administrative Data from Sri Lanka Jan 01, 2022 Publication
Sonia Bhalotra, Irma Clots-Figueras, Lakshmi Iyer Religion and abortion: The role of politician identity Nov 01, 2021 Publication
A. Nilesh Fernando Seeking the Treated: The Impact of Mobile Extension on Peer Information Exchange in India Nov 01, 2021 Publication
Arturo Aguilar, Emilio Gutierrez, and Enrique Seira The Effectiveness of Sin Food Taxes: Evidence from Mexico Apr 02, 2021 Publication
Lauren Honig, Amy Erica Smith, Jaimie Bleck What Stymies Action on Climate Change? Religious Institititons, Marginalization and Efficacy in Kenya Feb 20, 2021 Publication
Frederico Finan, Enrique Seira, and Alberto Simpser Voting with One’s Neighbors: Evidence from Migration within Mexico Jan 10, 2021 Publication
Saad Gulzar, Zuhad Hai, and Binod Kumar Paudel Information, Candidate Selection, and Quality of Representation: Evidence from Nepal Jan 10, 2021 Publication
Jacobus Cilliers,  Isaac Mbiti, and Andrew Zeitlin Can Public Rankings Improve School Performance? Evidence from a Nationwide Reform in Tanzania Jan 07, 2021 Publication