Improving the livelihoods of poor households and transitioning more women back to the labor force is a major challenge … in South Asia. Self-employment promoted through women's groups has often been cited as a promising intervention towards … achieve its primary objective of improving livelihoods by transitioning more women into work. The program has also expanded …

In patriarchal societies, sticky norms affect married women's social circles, their autonomy, and the outcomes of intra …-household bargaining. This paper uses primary data on women's social networks in Uttarakhand, India; the modal woman has only three friends … significant peer effects on only a few of the examined measures of women's autonomy. In contrast, peer effects exist on all …