This paper exploits a quasi-natural experiment to study the role of information in determining take-up patterns of social benefits in a non-stigma environment. We find that take-up rate of households who have the incentive to search for information for a longer period of time is between 8 and 13 percentage points higher as compared to a control group of households. This result is robust to the inclusion of various household characteristics. Our finding provides strong empirical support for information as an important explanation for low take-up rates.
Download Info
To download:
If you experience problems downloading a file, check if you have the
proper application to
view it first. Information about this may be contained
in the File-Format links below. In case of further problems read
the IDEAS help
file. Note that these files are not on the IDEAS
site. Please be patient as the files may be large.
Publisher Info
Paper provided by CESifo GmbH in its series CESifo Working Paper Series with number
CESifo Working Paper No. 1829.
Find related papers by JEL classification: I38 - Health, Education, and Welfare - - Welfare and Poverty - - - Government Programs; Provision and Effects of Welfare Programs
This paper has been announced in the following NEP Reports:
References listed on IDEAS Please report citation or reference errors to , or , if you are the registered author of the cited work, log in to your RePEc Author Service profile, click on "citations" and make appropriate adjustments.:
Marianne Bertrand & Erzo F.P. Luttmer & Sendhil Mullainathan, 1999.
"Network Effects and Welfare Cultures,"
JCPR Working Papers
62, Northwestern University/University of Chicago Joint Center for Poverty Research.
[Downloadable!]
Bertrand, M. & Luttmer, E.F.P. & Mullainathan, S., 1998.
"Network Effects and Welfare Cultures,"
Papers
201, Princeton, Woodrow Wilson School - Public and International Affairs.