Is Better Access to Information Effective in Improving Labor Market Outcomes? Experimental Evidence

由于各种原因，包括缺乏信息，为低收入者提供社会保险的效率不高。 同样，这些地区的劳动力市场也不能有效地发挥作用，特别是对年轻妇女来说，不能为她们创造就业途径，使她们摆脱贫困，改善福祉。 拟议的研究将利用实地实验，研究信息对提高向低收入者，特别是年轻妇女提供社会保险和就业的效率的影响。 该项目包括两项研究。 第一项研究调查了如何改善通过官僚机构的信息流，改善社会福利提供给贫困的接受者。 它还将研究信息影响官僚行为和采用信息增强管理工具的意愿的机制。第二个项目将研究信息流动如何影响低收入地区劳动力市场的效率。本研究的结果将为减贫提供重要的政策投入，并将有助于美国成为全球减贫计划的领导者。本研究将采用两种随机对照试验方法，研究改善信息对低收入人群提供社会保险和就业的影响。 第一项研究的目的是了解如何改善信息在多层次的官僚体系内的流动可以改善社会保障方案的执行。它在及时向贫困的工作福利参与者支付工资的背景下审查了这些问题。 实验评估认为，无论是在多个层次的官僚机构提供改进的信息是互补的，通过信息影响管理员的行为，并愿意采取信息增强管理工具的机制。第二项研究考察了政府资助的培训和就业安置计划背景下的信息流。它特别询问社区成员是否能够更有效地招聘高潜力的候选人进行培训，并改善贫困青年的长期就业和社会成果。这项研究还将研究青年人获得的信息如何影响按性别分列的方案参与和工作保留。这项研究的见解将有助于了解当地招聘人员的信息如何影响匹配质量和劳动力组成，个人就业结果以及年轻人的经济和社会福祉。该奖项反映了NSF的法定使命，并通过使用基金会的智力价值和更广泛的影响审查标准进行评估，被认为值得支持。

Provision of social insurance for low income people is not efficient for a variety of reasons, including lack of information. Similarly, labor markets in these areas do not function efficiently, especially for young women, to create pathways for employment to get them out poverty and improve their wellbeing. The proposed research will use field experiments to study the effects of information on improving efficiency of the provision of social insurance and employment for low income people, especially of young women. The project consists of two studies. The first study investigates how improved information flows through the bureaucracy improves the delivery of social benefits to impoverished recipients. It will also study the mechanisms through which information affects bureaucratic behavior and willingness to adopt information enhanced management tools. The second project will study how information flows influences the efficiency of labor markets in low income areas. The results of this research project will provide important policy inputs for poverty reduction and will help establish the US as a global leader in poverty reduction programs.This study will use two randomized control trial methods to study the effects of improved information on the provision of social insurance and employment among low income people. The first study aims to understand how improving the flow of information within a multi-tiered bureaucratic hierarchy can improve implementation of social protection programs. It examines these issues in the context of timely delivery of wages to impoverished workfare participants. The experimental evaluation considers whether providing improved information at multiple levels of the bureaucracy is complimentary, the mechanisms through which information influences administrator behavior, and willingness to adopt information enhancing management tools. The second study examines information flows in the context of a government-funded training and job placement program. It specifically asks whether community members can more effectively recruit high-potential candidates for training and improve long-term employment and social outcomes for poor youth. The research will also examine how information that youth receive affects program participation and job retention by gender. Insights from this study will inform understanding of how information by local recruiters affects match quality and labor force composition, individual employment outcomes, and youths' economic and social wellbeing.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.