Understanding the motivations behind people’s voluntary contributions to public goods is crucial for the broader issues of economic and social development. By using the experimental design of Fischbacher et al. (2001), we investigate the distribution of contribution types in two developing...

Microfinance institutions are key financial intermediaries between donors and borrowers in developing countries. Loan officers are crucial for establishing and maintaining the relationship between borrowers and microfinance institutions. This paper studies the impact of loan officers on the loan...

Abstract: Studies of political favouritism in Africa often treat ethnic and regional favouritism as interchangeable concepts. The present paper distinguishes between the two and investigates their relative influence in Sub-Saharan Africa. Focusing on whether individuals perceive their ethnic...

Common identity and peer punishment have been identified as important means to reduce free riding and to promote cooperation in teamwork settings. This paper examines the relative importance of these two mechanisms, as well as the importance of income distribution in team cooperation. In a...

Numerous empirical studies show that unions reduce wage differences. But surprisingly few attempts have been made to understand why. Swedish unions reveal that the reason is both ideological and strategic. Relying on employers to voluntarily increase higher wages, to protect efficiency-enhancing...

The European Union’s Emissions Trading Scheme (EU-ETS) is so far the largest emissions trading system in the world. It covers about 12000 installations, representing approximately 45% of EU emissions of CO2, with the objective to establish a carbon price creating incentives for cost efficient...

This paper reports from a simple natural field experiment based on an eco-nomics exam. Part of the exam consisted of 30 multiple choice questions, where the students obtained 1 point per correct answer while 1 point was deducted for each in-correct answer. We find no significant gender...

Uncertainty about the future is an important determinant of well-being,especially in developing countries where financial markets and other market failures result in ineffective insurance mechanisms. However, separating the effects of future uncertainty from realised events, and then measuring...

We study the optimal and equilibrium distribution of industrial and residential land in a given region. The trade-off between the agglomeration and dispersion forces, in the form of pollution from stationary forces, production externalities, and commuting costs, determines the emergence of...

In recent years, a growing number of authors have turned their focus to the question of why children work. While much of the research focuses on household level factors, macroeconomic factors have gained increasing attention. This is particularly true in the case of globalization. The purpose of...