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The Psychosocial Value of Employment: Evidence from a Refugee Camp

Author

Listed:
  • Reshmaan Hussam
  • Erin M. Kelley
  • Gregory Lane
  • Fatima Zahra

Abstract

Employment may be important to well-being for reasons beyond its role as an income source. This paper presents a causal estimate of the psychosocial value of employment in refugee camps in Bangladesh. We involve 745 individuals in a field experiment with three arms: a control arm, a weekly cash arm, and an employment arm of equal value. Employment raises psychosocial well-being substantially more than cash alone, and 66 percent of the employed are willing to forgo cash payments to continue working temporarily for free. Despite material poverty, those in our context both experience and recognize a nonmonetary, psychosocial value to employment.

Suggested Citation

  • Reshmaan Hussam & Erin M. Kelley & Gregory Lane & Fatima Zahra, 2022. "The Psychosocial Value of Employment: Evidence from a Refugee Camp," American Economic Review, American Economic Association, vol. 112(11), pages 3694-3724, November.
    • Handle: RePEc:aea:aecrev:v:112:y:2022:i:11:p:3694-3724
    DOI: 10.1257/aer.20211616
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    Citations

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    Cited by:

    1. Alexander Ahammer & Analisa Packham, 2022. "Disability Insurance Screening and Worker Outcomes," Upjohn Working Papers 22-375, W.E. Upjohn Institute for Employment Research.
    2. Lehner, Lukas & Kasy, Maximilian, 2022. "Employing the unemployed of Marienthal: Evaluation of a guaranteed job program," INET Oxford Working Papers 2022-29, Institute for New Economic Thinking at the Oxford Martin School, University of Oxford.
    3. Elice, Paola & Martínez Flores, Fernanda & Reichert, Arndt R., 2023. "Religious terrorism, forced migration, and women's empowerment: Evidence from the Boko Haram insurgency," Ruhr Economic Papers 1044, RWI - Leibniz-Institut für Wirtschaftsforschung, Ruhr-University Bochum, TU Dortmund University, University of Duisburg-Essen.
    4. Guilherme Amorim & Diogo Britto & Alexandre Fonseca & Breno Sampaio, 2022. "Job Loss, Unemployment Insurance and Health: Evidence from Brazil," BAFFI CAREFIN Working Papers 22192, BAFFI CAREFIN, Centre for Applied Research on International Markets Banking Finance and Regulation, Universita' Bocconi, Milano, Italy.
    5. Ahammer, Alexander & Packham, Analisa, 2023. "Effects of unemployment insurance duration on mental and physical health," Journal of Public Economics, Elsevier, vol. 226(C).
    6. Amuedo-Dorantes, Catalina & Ibanez, Ana Maria & Rozo, Sandra V. & Traettino, Salvador, 2023. "More Benefits, Fewer Children: How Regularization Affects Immigrant Fertility," IZA Discussion Papers 16170, Institute of Labor Economics (IZA).
    7. Tom Günther & Jakob Conradi & Clemens Hetschko, 2024. "Socialism, Identity and the Well-Being of Unemployed Women," CESifo Working Paper Series 11154, CESifo.
    8. Peter Ganong & Fiona Greig & Pascal Noel & Daniel M. Sullivan & Joseph Vavra, 2024. "Spending and Job-Finding Impacts of Expanded Unemployment Benefits: Evidence from Administrative Micro Data," American Economic Review, American Economic Association, vol. 114(9), pages 2898-2939, September.
    9. repec:ags:aaea22:335612 is not listed on IDEAS
    10. Siddique, Abu & Islam, Asad & Mozumder, Tanvir Ahmed & Rahman, Tabassum & Shatil, Tanvir, 2022. "Forced Displacement, Mental Health, and Child Development: Evidence from the Rohingya Refugees," SocArXiv b4fc7, Center for Open Science.
    11. Swati Dhingra & Fjolla Kondirolli, 2023. "Jobless and Stuck: Youth Unemployment and COVID-19 in India," IMF Economic Review, Palgrave Macmillan;International Monetary Fund, vol. 71(3), pages 580-610, September.
    12. Wein, Tom & Lanthorn, Heather & Fischer, Torben, 2023. "First steps toward building respectful development: Three experiments on dignity in aid in Kenya and the United States," World Development Perspectives, Elsevier, vol. 29(C).
    13. Arlen Guarin & Juliana Londoño-Vélez & Christian Posso, 2023. "Reparations as Development? Evidence from Victims of the Colombian Armed Conflict," Borradores de Economia 1236, Banco de la Republica de Colombia.
    14. Dhingra, Swati & Kondirolli, Fjolla, 2023. "Jobless and stuck: youth unemployment and COVID-19 in India," LSE Research Online Documents on Economics 119619, London School of Economics and Political Science, LSE Library.

    More about this item

    JEL classification:

    • C93 - Mathematical and Quantitative Methods - - Design of Experiments - - - Field Experiments
    • D91 - Microeconomics - - Micro-Based Behavioral Economics - - - Role and Effects of Psychological, Emotional, Social, and Cognitive Factors on Decision Making
    • I31 - Health, Education, and Welfare - - Welfare, Well-Being, and Poverty - - - General Welfare, Well-Being
    • J15 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - Demographic Economics - - - Economics of Minorities, Races, Indigenous Peoples, and Immigrants; Non-labor Discrimination
    • J22 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - Demand and Supply of Labor - - - Time Allocation and Labor Supply
    • O15 - Economic Development, Innovation, Technological Change, and Growth - - Economic Development - - - Economic Development: Human Resources; Human Development; Income Distribution; Migration

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