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The effects of community income inequality on health: Evidence from a randomized control trial in the Bolivian Amazon

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  • Undurraga, Eduardo A.
  • Behrman, Jere R.
  • Leonard, William R.
  • Godoy, Ricardo A.

Abstract

Research suggests that poorer people have worse health than the better-off and, more controversially, that income inequality harms health. But causal interpretations suffer from endogeneity. We addressed the gap by using a randomized control trial among a society of forager-farmers in the Bolivian Amazon. Treatments included one-time unconditional income transfers (T1) to all households and (T2) only to the poorest 20% of households, with other villages as controls. We assessed the effects of income inequality, absolute income, and spillovers within villages on self-reported health, objective indicators of health and nutrition, and adults' substance consumption. Most effects came from relative income. Targeted transfers increased the perceived stress of participants in better-off households. Evidence suggests increased work efforts among better-off households when the lot of the poor improved, possibly due to a preference for rank preservation. The study points to new paths by which inequality might affect health.

Suggested Citation

  • Undurraga, Eduardo A. & Behrman, Jere R. & Leonard, William R. & Godoy, Ricardo A., 2016. "The effects of community income inequality on health: Evidence from a randomized control trial in the Bolivian Amazon," Social Science & Medicine, Elsevier, vol. 149(C), pages 66-75.
    • Handle: RePEc:eee:socmed:v:149:y:2016:i:c:p:66-75
    DOI: 10.1016/j.socscimed.2015.12.003
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    Cited by:

    1. Undurraga, Eduardo A. & Nica, Veronica & Zhang, Rebecca & Mensah, Irene C. & Godoy, Ricardo A., 2016. "Individual health and the visibility of village economic inequality: Longitudinal evidence from native Amazonians in Bolivia," Economics & Human Biology, Elsevier, vol. 23(C), pages 18-26.
    2. Ma, Zhao & Bauchet, Jonathan & Steele, Diana & Godoy, Ricardo & Radel, Claudia & Zanotti, Laura, 2017. "Comparison of Direct Transfers for Human Capital Development and Environmental Conservation," World Development, Elsevier, vol. 99(C), pages 498-517.
    3. Luo, Weixiang & Xie, Yu, 2020. "Economic growth, income inequality and life expectancy in China," Social Science & Medicine, Elsevier, vol. 256(C).

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    More about this item

    Keywords

    Health; Economic inequality; Development; Income transfers; Randomized control trial;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • C93 - Mathematical and Quantitative Methods - - Design of Experiments - - - Field Experiments
    • I14 - Health, Education, and Welfare - - Health - - - Health and Inequality
    • I15 - Health, Education, and Welfare - - Health - - - Health and Economic Development
    • I38 - Health, Education, and Welfare - - Welfare, Well-Being, and Poverty - - - Government Programs; Provision and Effects of Welfare Programs
    • Z13 - Other Special Topics - - Cultural Economics - - - Economic Sociology; Economic Anthropology; Language; Social and Economic Stratification

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