IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/p/iza/izadps/dp18437.html

Online Buddies for Job Seekers: A Field Experiment

Author

Listed:
  • de Koning, Bart

    (Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam)

  • Muller, Paul

    (Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam)

  • Belot, Michèle

    (Cornell University)

  • Engels, Yvonne

    (UWV)

  • Fouarge, Didier

    (ROA, Maastricht University)

  • Keer, Mario

    (UWV)

  • Kircher, Philipp

    (Cornell University)

  • Phlippen, Sandra

    (Rijksuniversiteit Groningen, ABN Amro)

Abstract

We design an online platform to connect unemployed job seekers with `buddies': former job seekers who recently found employment. We focus on job seekers who search in occupations with poor prospects and buddies who successfully switched occupations. In a randomized controlled trial, we evaluate the impact of access to the platform on labor market outcomes. We find sizable effects. Thirteen to 18 months after getting access, initially unemployed job seekers are 6 percentage points (11%) more likely to be employed and earn 226 Euro more per month than those without access. The positive impact is concentrated among the long-term unemployed.

Suggested Citation

  • de Koning, Bart & Muller, Paul & Belot, Michèle & Engels, Yvonne & Fouarge, Didier & Keer, Mario & Kircher, Philipp & Phlippen, Sandra, 2026. "Online Buddies for Job Seekers: A Field Experiment," IZA Discussion Papers 18437, IZA Network @ LISER.
    • Handle: RePEc:iza:izadps:dp18437
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: https://docs.iza.org/dp18437.pdf
    Download Restriction: no
    ---><---

    Other versions of this item:

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Raj Chetty & Matthew O. Jackson & Theresa Kuchler & Johannes Stroebel & Nathaniel Hendren & Robert B. Fluegge & Sara Gong & Federico Gonzalez & Armelle Grondin & Matthew Jacob & Drew Johnston & Martin, 2022. "Social capital I: measurement and associations with economic mobility," Nature, Nature, vol. 608(7921), pages 108-121, August.
    2. David Card & Jochen Kluve & Andrea Weber, 2018. "What Works? A Meta Analysis of Recent Active Labor Market Program Evaluations," Journal of the European Economic Association, European Economic Association, vol. 16(3), pages 894-931.
    3. Altmann, Steffen & Glenny, Anita Marie & Mahlstedt, Robert & Sebald, Alexander, 2022. "The Direct and Indirect Effects of Online Job Search Advice," IZA Discussion Papers 15830, IZA Network @ LISER.
    4. Michèle Belot & Bart K. de Koning & Didier Fouarge & Philipp Kircher & Paul Muller & Sandra Phlippen, 2025. "Advising Job Seekers in Occupations with Poor Prospects: A Field Experiment," NBER Working Papers 33819, National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc.
    5. Yannis M. Ioannides & Linda Datcher Loury, 2004. "Job Information Networks, Neighborhood Effects, and Inequality," Journal of Economic Literature, American Economic Association, vol. 42(4), pages 1056-1093, December.
    6. Michèle Belot & Philipp Kircher & Paul Muller, 2019. "Providing Advice to Jobseekers at Low Cost: An Experimental Study on Online Advice," The Review of Economic Studies, Review of Economic Studies Ltd, vol. 86(4), pages 1411-1447.
    7. Mirjam Bächli & Rafael Lalive & Michele Pellizzari, 2025. "Helping jobseekers with recommendations based on skill profiles or past experience: Evidence from a randomized intervention," RFBerlin Discussion Paper Series 2589, ROCKWOOL Foundation Berlin (RFBerlin).
    8. Bramoullé, Yann & Saint-Paul, Gilles, 2010. "Social networks and labor market transitions," Labour Economics, Elsevier, vol. 17(1), pages 188-195, January.
    9. Kondo, Ayako & Shoji, Masahiro, 2019. "Peer effects in employment status: Evidence from housing lotteries," Journal of Urban Economics, Elsevier, vol. 113(C).
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Most related items

    These are the items that most often cite the same works as this one and are cited by the same works as this one.
    1. Andrea Kiss & Robert Garlick & Kate Orkin & Luke Hensel, 2023. "Jobseekers’ Beliefs about Comparative Advantage and (Mis)Directed Search," Upjohn Working Papers 23-388, W.E. Upjohn Institute for Employment Research.
    2. Dabed, Diego & Genz, Sabrina & Rademakers, Emilie, 2025. "Equalising the effects of automation? The role of task overlap for job finding," Labour Economics, Elsevier, vol. 96(C).
    3. Michèle Belot & Bart K. de Koning & Didier Fouarge & Philipp Kircher & Paul Muller & Sandra Phlippen, 2025. "Advising Job Seekers in Occupations with Poor Prospects: A Field Experiment," NBER Working Papers 33819, National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc.
    4. Guillaume Bied & Philippe Caillou & Bruno Cr'epon & Christophe Gaillac & Elia P'erennes & Mich`ele Sebag, 2026. "A Job I Like or a Job I Can Get: Designing Job Recommender Systems Using Field Experiments," Papers 2603.21699, arXiv.org.
    5. Stefano Caria & Simon Franklin & Marc Witte, 2023. "Searching with Friends," Journal of Labor Economics, University of Chicago Press, vol. 41(4), pages 887-922.
    6. Mirjam Bächli & Hélène Benghalem & Doriana Tinello & Damaris Aschwanden & Sascha Zuber & Matthias Kliegel & Michele Pellizzari & Rafael Lalive, 2024. "Ranking occupations by their proximity to workers’ profiles," Swiss Journal of Economics and Statistics, Springer;Swiss Society of Economics and Statistics, vol. 160(1), pages 1-17, December.
    7. Cuéllar Martín, Jaime & Martín-Román, Ángel L. & Moral, Alfonso, 2017. "A composed error model decomposition and spatial analysis of local unemployment," MPRA Paper 79783, University Library of Munich, Germany.
    8. Banerjee, Abhijit V. & Chiplunkar, Gaurav, 2024. "How important are matching frictions in the labor market? Experimental & non-experimental evidence from a large Indian firm," Journal of Development Economics, Elsevier, vol. 171(C).
    9. Cairo, Sofie & Mahlstedt, Robert, 2023. "The disparate effects of information provision: A field experiment on the work incentives of social welfare," Journal of Public Economics, Elsevier, vol. 226(C).
    10. Yulia Evsyukova & Felix Rusche & Wladislaw Mill, 2025. "LinkedOut? A Field Experiment on Discrimination in Job Network Formation," The Quarterly Journal of Economics, President and Fellows of Harvard College, vol. 140(1), pages 283-334.
    11. Kyyrä, Tomi & Verho, Jouko, 2025. "Do Financial Incentives for Training and Caseworker Meetings Enhance Re-employment?," Working Papers 175, VATT Institute for Economic Research.
    12. Armand, Alex & Carneiro, Pedro & Tagliati, Federico & Xia, Yiming, 2026. "Can subsidized employment tackle long-term unemployment? Experimental evidence from North Macedonia," Journal of Development Economics, Elsevier, vol. 178(C).
    13. Girum Abebe & A Stefano Caria & Marcel Fafchamps & Paolo Falco & Simon Franklin & Simon Quinn, 2021. "Anonymity or Distance? Job Search and Labour Market Exclusion in a Growing African City [Endogenous Stratification in Randomized Experiments]," The Review of Economic Studies, Review of Economic Studies Ltd, vol. 88(3), pages 1279-1310.
    14. Faberman, R. Jason & Menzio, Guido, 2018. "Evidence on the relationship between recruiting and the starting wage," Labour Economics, Elsevier, vol. 50(C), pages 67-79.
    15. Eva m. Berger & Guenther Koenig & Henning Müller & Felix Schmidt & Daniel Schunk, 2017. "Self-Regulation Training and Job Search Effort: A Natural Field Experiment within an Active Labor Market Program," Working Papers 1712, Gutenberg School of Management and Economics, Johannes Gutenberg-Universität Mainz.
    16. Belot, Michèle & Kircher, Philipp & Muller, Paul, 2022. "Do the Long-term Unemployed Benefit from Automated Occupational Advice during Online Job Search?," CEPR Discussion Papers 17513, Centre for Economic Policy Research.
    17. Altmann, Steffen & Cairo, Sofie & Mahlstedt, Robert & Sebald, Alexander, 2022. "Do Job Seekers Understand the UI Benefit System (And Does It Matter)?," IZA Discussion Papers 15747, IZA Network @ LISER.
    18. Marco Caliendo & Ricarda Schmidl & Arne Uhlendorff, 2011. "Social networks, job search methods and reservation wages: evidence for Germany," International Journal of Manpower, Emerald Group Publishing Limited, vol. 32(7), pages 796-824, October.
    19. Sergio Cappellini, 2022. "Optimal Unemployment Insurance with Worker Profiling," "Marco Fanno" Working Papers 0294, Dipartimento di Scienze Economiche "Marco Fanno".
    20. Rao, Neel, 2016. "Social effects in employer learning: An analysis of siblings," Labour Economics, Elsevier, vol. 38(C), pages 24-36.

    More about this item

    Keywords

    ;
    ;
    ;
    ;

    JEL classification:

    • J62 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - Mobility, Unemployment, Vacancies, and Immigrant Workers - - - Job, Occupational and Intergenerational Mobility; Promotion
    • J64 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - Mobility, Unemployment, Vacancies, and Immigrant Workers - - - Unemployment: Models, Duration, Incidence, and Job Search
    • C93 - Mathematical and Quantitative Methods - - Design of Experiments - - - Field Experiments

    NEP fields

    This paper has been announced in the following NEP Reports:

    Statistics

    Access and download statistics

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:iza:izadps:dp18437. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    If CitEc recognized a bibliographic reference but did not link an item in RePEc to it, you can help with this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: Mark Fallak (email available below). General contact details of provider: https://edirc.repec.org/data/izaaalu.html .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.