Department of Economics Boston College EC 887: Topics in Development Economics Fall 2018 S Anukriti (anukriti@bc.edu) Office: Maloney 329 Office Hours: Thursdays 3-5 pm or email for appointment Lectures: Tuesdays and Thursdays, 1:30 pm 2:45 pm (Maloney 330) Description: EC 887 is the first course in a two-part graduate sequence in development economics. The primary motivation is to introduce you to a subset of the micro-economic literature on development and some frequently used empirical techniques. A year of graduatelevel microeconomics and econometrics are pre-requisites for registration. All course materials will be posted on Canvas. Some recommended background texts are: Ray, Debraj (1998), Development Economics, Princeton University Press Banerjee, Abhijit and Esther Duflo (2011), Poor Economics, PublicAffairs Deaton, Angus (1997), The Analysis of Household Surveys: A Microeconometric Approach to Development Policy, Johns Hopkins University Press [PDF version available here] Angrist, Joshua D. and Jörn-Steffen Pischke (2008), Mostly Harmless Econometrics: An Empiricist's Companion, Princeton University Press Wooldridge, Jeffrey (2002), Econometric Analysis of Cross Section and Panel Data, MIT Press Bardhan, Pranab and Christopher Udry (1999), Development Microeconomics, Oxford University Press Pre-requisites: One year each of Ph.D.-level microeconomic theory and econometrics. Academic Integrity: Please familiarize yourself with BC's policies and procedures on academic integrity. http://www.bc.edu/offices/stserv/academic/integrity.html Requirements and Grading: Please submit all assignments by 11:59 pm of the due date. The final grade will be based on the following: 1. Seminar attendance (5%): You are expected to attend the Human and Economic Development (HED) seminar and the Applied Microeconomics Seminar. The schedules are available on the department webpage. If you have a class that clashes with either seminar, inform me in advance. 2. Presentations on papers in the reading list (10% each) : You will be required to make two presentations to the class on papers marked $. These presentations should be no more than 30-45 min long. Please email me your top three choices by Sep 6.
3. A 10-15 page research proposal (25%) and its presentation (10%): The proposal should include a well-defined question, a description of its economic relevance, a brief review of the literature, a discussion of the relevant economic theory, and an overview of the data and the methodological approach that will be used. The deadlines for various sections are as follows: A) Sep 25 Submit 2-3 potential research questions, each with a short paragraph describing the motivation. I will provide feedback on these on Sep 26. B) Oct 18: Discussion of the relevant empirical and theoretical literature. C) Nov 15: Data and methodological framework. D) Dec 4/ 6: Classroom presentation of the proposal. E) Dec 10: Full proposal 4. Two referee reports (40%): Each report should be <= 3 double-spaced pages. You should include a one-paragraph summary of the paper s main result, 3-4 main comments, followed by some minor points, if any. You should clearly state the shortcomings of the work and provide constructive and realistic suggestions for improvement. The papers are: + Experimental Evidence on the Economics of Rural Electrification by Kenneth Lee, Edward Miguel, Catherine Wolfram (Due by Oct 4) + The Entertaining Way to Behavioral Change: Fighting HIV with MTV by Abhijit Banerjee, Eliana La Ferrara, and Victor Orozco (Due by Nov 6) Reading List: Before each lecture, I will assign the readings we will discuss in the next lecture. You are expected to read the assigned papers in advance. 1. Introduction to Development Economics Banerjee, Abhijit and Esther Duflo (2007) The Economic Lives of the Poor, Journal of Economic Perspectives, 21 (1), 141-68 Deaton, Angus (2010), Understanding the Mechanisms of Economic Development, Journal of Economic Perspectives, 24 (3), 3-16 Rosenzweig, Mark R., (2010), Microeconomic Approaches to Development: Schooling, Learning, and Growth, Journal of Economic Perspectives, 24 (3), 81-96 Bardhan, Pranab (1993), Economics of Development and the Development of Economics, Journal of Economic Perspectives, 7(2), 129-42
2. Empirical Methods Angrist, Joshua D. and Alan B. Krueger (1999), Empirical Strategies in Labor Economics, Handbook of Labor Economics, 3A, 1277-366 Deaton, Angus (1995), Data and Econometric Tools for Development Analysis, Handbook of Development Economics, 3, 1785-880 Imbens, Guido W. and Jeffrey M. Wooldridge (2009), Recent Developments in the Econometrics of Program Evaluation, Journal of Economic Literature, 47 (1), 5-86 Rosenzweig, Mark R. and Kenneth I. Wolpin (2000), Natural Natural Experiments in Economics, Journal of Economic Literature, 38 (4), 827-74 Bertrand, Marianne, Esther Duflo, and Sendhil Mullainathan (2004), How Much Should We Trust Differences-in-Differences Estimates?, Quarterly Journal of Economics, 119 (1), 249-76 Angrist and Pischke (2008), Instrumental Variables in Action: Sometimes You Get What You Need (Chap 4) Lee, David S., and Thomas Lemieux (2010), "Regression Discontinuity Designs in Economics," Journal of Economic Literature, 48 (2), 281-355 Duflo, Esther, Rachel Glennerster, and Michael Kremer (2007), Using Randomization in Development Economics: A Toolkit, Handbook of Development Economics, 4, 3895-962 Banerjee, Abhijit and Esther Duflo (2009), "The Experimental Approach to Development Economics," Annual Review of Economics, 1, 151-178 Deaton, Angus (2009), Instruments of Development: Randomization in the Tropics, and the Search for the Elusive Keys to Economic Development, Proceedings of the British Academy, 2008 Lectures 162:123-160 Ravallion, Martin (2009), Should the Randomistas Rule?, The Economists' Voice, 6 (2) 3. Health, Nutrition, and Productivity Ray (1998), pp. 272-279 and pp. 489-504 Currie, Janet and Tom Vogl (2013), Early-life Health and Adult Circumstances in Developing Countries, Annual Review of Economics, Vol 5, 1-36
Strauss, John and Duncan Thomas (1998), Health, Nutrition, and Economic Development, Journal of Economic Literature, 36 (2), 766-817 Angus Deaton (2003), Health, Inequality, and Economic Development, Journal of Economic Literature, 41(1), 113-58 Acemoglu, Daron and Simon Johnson (2007), Disease and Development: The Effect of Life Expectancy on Economic Growth, Journal of Political Economy, 115 (6), 925-85 Strauss, John (1986), Does Better Nutrition Raise Farm Productivity? Journal of Political Economy, 94 (2), 297-320 Subramanian, Shankar and Angus Deaton (1996), The Demand for Food and Calories, Journal of Political Economy, 104 (1), 133-62 Miguel, Edward and Michael Kremer (2004). Worms: Identifying Impacts on Education and Health in the Presence of Treatment Externalities, Econometrica, 72 (1), 159-217 Das, Jishnu, Jeffrey Hammer and Kenneth Leonard. 2008. The Quality of Medical Advice in Low-Income Countries, Journal of Economic Perspectives, 22(2): 93-114. Dupas, Pascaline. 2011. Health Behavior in Developing Countries, Annual Review of Economics, 3: 425-449. 4. Education Glewwe, Paul and Michael Kremer (2006), Schools, Teachers, and Education Outcomes in Developing Countries, Handbook of the Economics of Education, 2, 945-1017 Pop-Eleches, Cristian and Miguel Urquiola (2013), Going to a Better School: Effects and Behavioral Responses, American Economic Review, 103 (4), 1289-324 Jensen, Robert (2010), The (Perceived) Returns to Education and the Demand for Schooling, Quarterly Journal of Economics, 125 (2), 515-48 Urquiola, Miguel and Eric Verhoogen (2009), Class-Size Caps, Sorting, and the Regression-Discontinuity Design, American Economic Review, 99 (1), 179-215 $Duflo, Esther, Pascaline Dupas, and Michael Kremer (2010), Peer Effects and the Impact of Tracking: Evidence from a Randomized Evaluation in Kenya, American Economic Review, 101 (5), 1739 74 $Banerjee, Abhijit V., Shawn Cole, Esther Duflo, and Leigh Linden (2007), Remedying Education: Evidence from Two Randomized Experiments in India, Quarterly Journal of Economics, 122 (3), 1235-64
$Baird, Sarah, Craig McIntosh, and Berk Özler (2011), Cash or Condition? Evidence from a Cash Transfer Experiment, Quarterly Journal of Economics, 126 (4), 1709-53 Muralidharan, Karthik (2011), Teacher Performance Pay: Experimental Evidence from India, Journal of Political Economy, 119 (1), 39-77 $Duflo, Esther (2001), Schooling and Labor Market Consequences of School Construction in Indonesia: Evidence from an Unusual Policy Experiment, American Economic Review, 91(4), pp 795-813. Duflo, Esther (2004), The Medium Run Effects of Educational Expansion: Evidence from a Large School Construction Program in Indonesia, Journal of Development Economics, 74(1), pp. 163-197. Kremer, Michael and Alaka Holla (2009), Improving Education in the Developing World: What Have We Learned from Randomized Evaluations?, Annual Review of Economics, Volume One, pp. 513 542. Muralidharan, Karthik (2017), Field Experiments in Education in Developing Countries, Handbook of Economic Field Experiments, Vol 2, pp 323-385 5. Fertility and the Family Schultz, Paul T. (2010), Population and Health Policies, in Handbook of Development Economics, 5, 4785-881 Schultz, Paul T. (2008), Population Policies, Fertility, Women's Human Capital, and Child Quality, Handbook of Development Economics, 4, 3249-303 Pritchett, Lant (1994), Desired Fertility and the Impact of Population Policies, Population and Development Review, 20 (1), 1-55 Fafchamps, Marcel and Agnes R. Quisumbing (2008), Household Formation and Marriage Markets in Rural Areas, Handbook of Development Economics, 4, 3187-3247 $Ashraf, Nava, Erica Field, and Jean Lee (2014), "Household Bargaining and Excess Fertility: An Experimental Study in Zambia," American Economic Review, 104(7), 2210-37 $Ashraf, Nava (2009), Spousal Control and Intra-Household Decision Making: An Experimental Study in the Philippines, American Economic Review, 99 (4), 1245-77 $Ambrus, Attila and Erica Field (2008), Early Marriage, Age of Menarche and Female Schooling Attainment in Bangladesh, Journal of Political Economy, 116 (5), 881-930
Udry, Christopher (1996). Gender, Agricultural Production, and the Theory of the Household, Journal of Political Economy, 104 (5), pp. 1010-1045. 6. Gender Gaps Alesina, Alberto, Paola Giuliano, and Nathan Nunn (2011), On the Origins of Gender Roles: Women and the Plough, Quarterly Journal of Economics, 128 (2), 469-530 Jayachandran, Seema (2015), "The Roots of Gender Inequality in Developing Countries," Annual Review of Economics, Vol 7, 63-88 Duflo, Esther (2012), "Women Empowerment and Economic Development," Journal of Economic Literature, 50 (4), 1051-79 $Jensen, Robert (2012), Do Labor Market Opportunities Affect Young Women's Work and Family Decisions? Experimental Evidence from India, Quarterly Journal of Economics, 127 (2), 753-92 Jayachandran, Seema and Ilyana Kuziemko (2011), Why Do Mothers Breastfeed Girls Less Than Boys: Evidence and Implications for Child Health in India, Quarterly Journal of Economics, 126 (3), 1485-1538 Chattopadhyay, Raghabendra and Esther Duflo (2004), Women as Policy Makers: Evidence from a Randomized Policy Experiment in India, Econometrica, 72 (5), 1409-43 $Beaman, Lori, Raghabendra Chattopadhyay, Esther Duflo, Rohini Pande, and Petia Topalova (2009), Powerful Women: Does Exposure Reduce Bias? Quarterly Journal of Economics, 124 (4), 1497-540 $De Mel, Suresh, David McKenzie, and Christopher Woodruff (2009), Are Women More Credit Constrained? Experimental Evidence on Gender and Microenterprise Returns, American Economic Journal: Applied Economics, 1 (3), 1-32 7. Corruption and Political Economy Olken, Ben and Rohini Pande (2012), Corruption in Developing Countries, Annual Review of Economics, 4, 479-509 Chaudhury, Nazmul, Jeffrey Hammer, Michael Kremer, Karthik Muralidharan, and F. Halsey Rogers (2006), Missing in Action: Teacher and Health Worker Absence in Developing Countries, Journal of Economic Perspectives, 20 (1), 91-116 $Fisman, Raymond and Edward Miguel (2007), Corruption, Norms, and Legal
Enforcement: Evidence from Diplomatic Parking Tickets, Journal of Political Economy, 115 (6), 1020-48 $Bertrand, M., S. Djankov, R. Hanna, and S. Mullainathan (2007), Obtaining a Driving License in India: An Experimental Approach to Studying Corruption, 122(4), 1639- Björkman, Martina, and Jakob Svensson (2009), Power to the People: Evidence from a Randomized Field Experiment of Community-Based Monitoring in Uganda, Quarterly Journal of Economics, 124 (2), 735-69 Olken, Ben (2007), Monitoring Corruption: Evidence from a Field Experiment in Indonesia, Journal of Political Economy, 115(2), 200-249 Ferraz, Claudio and Frederico Finan (2008), Exposing Corrupt Politicians: The Effects of Brazil s Publicly Released Audits on Electoral Outcomes, Quarterly Journal of Economics, 123 (2), 703-45 Khwaja, Asim, and Atif Mian (2005), Do Lenders Favor Politically Connected Firms? Rent Provision in an Emerging Financial Market, Quarterly Journal of Economics, 120(4) $Fisman, Ray (2001), Estimating the Value of Political Connections, American Economic Review, 91, 1095-1102