Handbook of Field Experiments

Section I. The Challenge of Improving Human Capital

Chapter 1. Impacts and Determinants of Health Levels in Low-Income Countries

• 1. Introduction
• 2. Methodological Section
• 3. Experimental Estimates of the Impact of Health on Individual Productivity
• 4. Environmental/Infrastructural Determinants of Health
• 5. Demand for Health Products and Healthcare
• 6. Supply of Health Care
• 7. Conclusion

Chapter 2. The Production of Human Capital in Developed Countries: Evidence From 196 Randomized Field Experiments

• 1. Introduction
• 2. A Method for Finding and Evaluating Field Experiments
• 3. Evidence From 196 Randomized Field Trials
• 4. Combining What Works: Evidence From a Randomized Field Experiment in Houston
• 5. Conclusion

Chapter 3. Field Experiments in Education in Developing Countries

• 1. Introduction
• 2. Field Experiments in Education—A Short Overview
• 3. Selected Overview of Field Experiments in Education in Developing Countries
• 4. Limitations of Field Experiments and Strategies for Mitigating Them
• 5. Conducting Field Experiments in Education in Developing Countries
• 6. Conclusion

Section II. Designing Effective Social Programs

Chapter 4. Social Policy: Mechanism Experiments and Policy Evaluations

• 1. Introduction
• 2. What Are Mechanism Experiments?
• 3. Why Do Mechanism Experiments?
• 4. When to Do Mechanism Experiments Versus Policy Evaluations?
• 5. Conclusion

Chapter 5. Field Experiments in Developing Country Agriculture

• 1. Introduction
• 2. A Review of FEs in Agriculture
• 3. Agriculture and FEs: A Conceptual Framework
• 4. Agriculture is Different: Implications for the Design and Implementation of FEs
• 5. Discussion: Using FEs to Reveal the Production Function in Agriculture

Chapter 6. The Personnel Economics of the Developing State

• 1. Introduction
• 2. Stylized Facts on the Architecture of the State and the Role of Individuals
• 3. The Selection and Recruitment of Public Officials
• 4. Using Incentives to Improve Performance
• 5. Monitoring Mechanisms and Public Service Delivery
• 6. Towards Smart(er) Governance: the Promise of e-Governance and Other Avenues
• 7. Concluding Thoughts
• Appendix

Chapter 7. Designing Social Protection Programs: Using Theory and Experimentation to Understand How to Help Combat Poverty

• 1. Introduction
• 2. Redistributive Programs
• 3. Missing Insurance Markets
• 4. Behavioral Constraints
• 5. Market Failures Preventing Asset Accumulation
• 6. Ideas Only Go So Far: Implementation Matters Too
• 7. Conclusion: Key Areas for Further Work

Chapter 8. Social Experiments in the Labor Market

• 1. Introduction
• 2. What Are Social Experiments? Historical and Econometric Background
• 3. A More Thorough Overview of Labor Market Social Experiments
• 4. Going Beyond Treatment–Control Comparisons to Resolve Additional Design Issues
• 5. Conclusion