Excellence in Research: The impact of online comparison websites on the remittance industry

这个拟议的研究项目将使用实验方法和调查来调查网上比较购物对公司选择的影响，以及向移民向本国汇款所收取的费用。尽管移民汇款是发展中国家资金流动的重要来源，因此也是经济增长和全球发展的主要来源，但汇款的成本往往非常高，平均约占汇款金额的8%。据推测，网上比较购物将允许消费者选择提供更低成本和更好服务的公司，因此，这些服务的价格可能会下降。虽然这是一种可能性，但主要由于缺乏数据，这一问题的经验证据有限。拟议的研究将结合经济理论、结构模型、实地实验和调查数据来调查这些问题。pi将调查来自不同国家的400名移民，他们使用这些在线比较购物网站，以确定在线比较购物对公司选择的影响，以及这些比较对汇款成本的影响。这项研究的结果将对移民汇款的成本产生重要影响，可能增加市场参与者的数量和数量，并对全球发展作出重大贡献。结果还将确立美国在移民转移市场的全球领导者地位。这个拟议的研究项目将使用多种方法来研究移民汇款服务的在线比较购物对移民选择公司和此类服务成本的因果影响。本研究将结合(1)理论、(2)实地实验、(3)调查数据、(4)结构建模和(5)政策评估，首次尝试严格评估比较网站对行业供需双方的因果影响。pi试图将信息和通信技术对消费者行为影响的研究扩展到一个未开发的市场——汇款行业。通过在多个时间点对400名移民进行抽样调查，并让他们接受随机信息处理，pi将确定“价格比较”对移民选择的因果影响。然后，pi将使用结构模型进行反事实政策评估，以评估这些在线比较购物实验的潜在供给侧影响以及福利效应。这项研究的结果将为围绕如何降低移民汇款行业成本的政策辩论提供信息。该奖项反映了美国国家科学基金会的法定使命，并通过使用基金会的知识价值和更广泛的影响审查标准进行评估，被认为值得支持。

This proposed research project will use experimental methods and surveys to investigate the effects of on-line comparison shopping on choice of companies and fees charged for migrants sending money to their home countries. Even though migrant remittances serve as an important source of financial flows to the developing world, hence a major source of economic growth and global development, the cost of remittances tend to be very high averaging about 8% of the amount transmitted. It is hypothesized that on-line comparison shopping will allow consumers to choose companies that provide lower cost with better services and as a result, prices for these services are likely to fall. While this is a possibility, there is limited empirical evidence of this issue mainly because of lack of data. The proposed research will combine economic theory, structural modelling, field experiments, and survey data to investigate these issues. The PIs will survey 400 migrants from different countries who use these on-line comparison shopping websites to determine what impacts on-line comparison shopping have on choice of company and the impact of these comparisons on the cost of sending money. The results of this research will have important impacts on the cost of sending migrant remittances, possibly increase the volume and the number of market participants, as well as significantly contribute to global development. The results will also establish the US as the global leader in migrants' transfer markets. This proposed research project will use a variety of methods to study the causal impacts of on-line comparison shopping for migrant remittance services on the choice of companies by migrants and the cost of such services. This study will be one of the first to attempt a rigorous assessment of the causal impact of comparison websites on both the demand and supply sides of the industry by combining (1) theory, (2) field experiments, (3) survey data, (4) structural modeling, and (5) policy evaluations. The PIs seek to extend research on the impacts of information and communication technologies on consumer behavior to an unexplored market---the remittance industry. By surveying a sample of 400 migrants at multiple points in time and exposing them to randomized information treatments, the PIs will identify the causal impact of "price comparison" on migrant choices. The PIs will then use a structural model to conduct counterfactual policy evaluations to assess the potential supply-side impacts as well as welfare effects of these on-line comparison shopping experiments. The findings of this research will inform the policy debate surrounding ways to reduce cost in the migrant remittance industry.This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.