American Economic Review
ISSN 0002-8282 (Print) | ISSN 1944-7981 (Online)
Why Don't the Poor Save More? Evidence from Health Savings Experiments
American Economic Review
vol. 103,
no. 4, June 2013
(pp. 1138–71)
Abstract
Using data from a field experiment in Kenya, we document that providing individuals with simple informal savings technologies can substantially increase investment in preventative health and reduce vulnerability to health shocks. Simply providing a safe place to keep money was sufficient to increase health savings by 66 percent. Adding an earmarking feature was only helpful when funds were put toward emergencies, or for individuals that are frequently taxed by friends and relatives. Group-based savings and credit schemes had very large effects.Citation
Dupas, Pascaline, and Jonathan Robinson. 2013. "Why Don't the Poor Save More? Evidence from Health Savings Experiments." American Economic Review, 103 (4): 1138–71. DOI: 10.1257/aer.103.4.1138Additional Materials
JEL Classification
- C93 Field Experiments
- D14 Personal Finance
- D15 Intertemporal Consumer Choice; Life Cycle Models and Saving
- I12 Health Production
- O12 Microeconomic Analyses of Economic Development