Research output

Papers

Belief-based poverty traps and the effects of material and psychological development interventions
Mark Treurniet and Robert Lensink
We study how development interventions can affect economic outcomes via agency beliefs. We model an agent who is uncertain about her agency, and focus on the situation that the agent underestimates her agency. Material development interventions increase the agent’s initial wealth, but may negatively affect her beliefs about her agency, thus decreasing effort and final wealth, and potentially generating a belief-based poverty trap. Instead, psychological interventions can increase beliefs about agency, thus turning the effect on effort and final wealth. A combination of both interventions can combine the positive effects of increased initial wealth and increased agency beliefs.

Training materials

"Progress with your goals" training material
Claire Stein, Nhung Vu, Linh Dieu Nguyen, Ha Thanh, Truong Nguyen Duy, Huong Trinh Thi Thanh, Nina Hansen, Travis Lybbert, Mark Treurniet and Robert Lensink
Microfinance has emerged as a crucial tool in empowering women to engage in economic activities, with recent evidence suggesting that outcomes can be improved through tailored curriculums. In the context of a collaboration project between the University of Groningen and TYM Microfinance in Vietnam, we designed a training aimed at enhancing women's empowerment. Our training curriculum aims to empower participants to effectively save and achieve their goals, by focusing on goal-setting, self-efficacy, and communication. Two versions of the training have been developed, integrating either an independent or interdependent framing. This document contains training materials including facilitator guidelines, and the participant handbook, which provide further insights into the framings and session activities.