Erica Field
Erica M. Field joined the Duke faculty as an associate professor in 2011. She is also a faculty research fellow at the National Bureau of Economic Research. Professor Field received her Ph.D. and M.A. in economics from Princeton University in 2003 and her B.A. in economics and Latin American studies from Vassar College in 1996. Since receiving her doctorate, she has worked at Princeton, Stanford, and most recently Harvard, where she was a professor for six years before coming to Duke.
Content by Erica Field
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Publication - Policy Brief
Understanding gender barriers in the Pakistani labour market: A deep dive in the job search process
The emerging reasons behind low female labour force participation rates in developing countries are a lack of access to safe transport, social norms, and the burden of household responsibilities. However, one area which has received less attention is the job search process itself. We use data from a job search platform in Lahore, Pakistan, to discuss the differences...
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Project
Women's mobility, job search, and employment: Follow-up evidence from a randomised control trial
Unemployment and economically inactive people are one of the biggest challenges facing urban labour markets in low-income countries. In South Asian cities, this pattern is more pronounced across gender lines with women less likely than men to participate in the labour market, even at relatively high levels of education. This project investigates the constraints on women’s...
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Project
Firm growth and information frictions in the market for skills
This study is motivated by two major challenges confronting low-income countries: Rising unemployment and underemployment, and low productivity and growth in firms. An important reason for this is information frictions in the labour market that affect both firms and work-seekers. On the demand side, firms may have limited information about the skills of workers when they...
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Data Item
Data: Long-run effects of repayment flexibility in microfinance: Evidence from India
Financiers across the world structure debt contracts to limit the risk of entrepreneurial lending. But debt structures that reduce risk may inhibit enterprise growth, especially among the poor. Using a field experiment we quantify the short- and long-run tradeoffs associated with the classic microfinance debt contract. We contrast the classic contract which requires that...
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Project
Evaluation of National Community Driven Development Project (NCDDP) Myanmar
Since January 2013, the Department of Rural Development (DRD) of the Ministry of Agriculture, Livestock and Irrigation (MOALI) has been implementing the National Community Driven Development Project (NCDDP) with support from the World Bank and other development partners (DPs). The objective of the project is to enable poor rural communities to benefit from improved access...
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Blog post
Overcoming barriers to women’s mobility in Pakistan
Expanding transport networks, scheduling services, providing reliable transport in peri-urban areas, improving the design of women’s-only services, educating drivers and conductors on sexual harassment, and improving public safety improve mobility. Social norms against women coming into close contact with unrelated men, and the discomfort, social stigma, and fear of...
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Publication - Policy Brief
Gender equity in transport planning: Improving women’s access to public transport in Pakistan
Women in Pakistan are more dependent on public transport due to various social norms. However, they also face significant challenges while using public transport because of concerns over safety, harassment and worries about their social reputation. A lack of transport options for women restricts their lives substantially and affects whether they work, what kind of...
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Blog post
Access to credit and female labour force participation in India
Women’s physical access to microfinance loans from the Self Employed Women’s Association (SEWA) Bank, correlates with the probability of accessing loans, which in turn correlates with the likelihood of working in the long-run. Financial empowerment and labour Access to microfinance loans provides resources for home-based work and places financial decision-making power...
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Publication - Policy Brief
Maternal mortality risk and gender gap in desired fertility
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Publication - Project Report
Maternal mortality risk and the gender gap in desired fertility
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Project
Maternal mortality risk and gender gap in desired fertility
High rates of urbanisation generate both positive and negative externalities in developing countries. While urbanisation is linked to productivity and economic growth, it places a strain on the already meager public infrastructure, leaving the housing, health, and education needs of the urban poor largely unmet. In Zambia, 36% of the population resides in urban cities and,...
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Publication - Working Paper
Does women’s banking matter for women? Evidence from urban India
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Project
Programme delivery effectiveness and health outcomes of maternal cash transfer programme
The Government of Myanmar, supported by the Department of Social Welfare (DSW) at the Ministry of Social Welfare, Relief and Resettlement (MSWRR), launched a National Social Protection Strategy in December 2014. Among the “Flagship Programmes” stated in the Strategy, the Government committed to a universal maternity cash transfer (MCT) programme for pregnant women and...
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Project
Public transport and urban labour market integration: A randomised control trial
A well-integrated citywide public transport network contributes to economic growth by reducing transport costs and travel time, facilitating specialisation of firms and workers, and decreasing the cost of economic transactions. Yet, despite increasing urbanisation, most of Pakistan’s cities suffer from a poorly connected public transport network. In Lahore,...
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Project
Access to credit and female labour supply in India
Access to microfinance integrates women into the labour force in the long run. This effect is driven by a greater participation of women in household business activity, but does not seem to be associated with a sustainable change in female empowerment. Results also suggest that as a consequence of increasing participation in the labour force, greater...
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Publication - Policy Brief
Long Run-Effects of Repayment Flexibility in Microfinance: Evidence from India (Policy Brief)
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Publication - Working Paper
Long Run-Effects of Repayment Flexibility in Microfinance: Evidence from India (Working Paper)
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Project
Long Run-Effects of Repayment Flexibility in Microfinance: Evidence from India
As governments decide on the optimal regulation for the microfinance sector, key questions include the appropriate interest rate and repayment structure. This project investigates the benefits and costs of introducing greater flexibility into the classic repayment structure of microfinance institution (MFI) loans, which requires small installments starting immediately after...