Ray Fisman gets credit for the title, Jonas Hjort gets credit for his paper on how ethnic divisions on productivity:
In team production at a plant in Kenya, an upstream worker supplies and distributes flowers to two downstream workers who assemble them into bunches.
The plant uses an essentially random rotation process to assign workers to positions, leading to three types of teams: (a) ethnically homogeneous teams, and teams in which (b) one or (c) both downstream workers belong to a tribe in rivalry with the upstream worker’s tribe.
I find strong evidence that upstream workers undersupply non-coethnic downstream workers (vertical discrimination) and shift flowers from non-coethnic to coethnic downstream workers (horizontal discrimination), at the cost of lower own pay and total output.
A period of ethnic conflict following Kenya’s 2007 election led to a sharp increase in discrimination. In response, the plant began paying the two downstream workers for their combined output (team pay). This led to a modest output reduction in (a) and (c) teams – as predicted by standard incentive models – but an increase in output in (b) teams, and overall. Workers’ behavior before conflict, during conflict, and under team pay is predicted by a model of taste-based discrimination.
Humans depress me yet again.
And a footnote to the academics who worry that field experiments are taking over the discipline, or the grad students who think they need to do an experiment (a hear this a lot, especially in political science): I think this paper is a great example how observational work (when well done) can be better, more interesting, and harder. And I think these papers get rewarded more.
Here’s my advice post on why grad students should think twice about field experiments for their dissertations.
42 Responses
Humans depress me yet again http://t.co/mBO4qxoUoz
RT @viewfromthecave: Evidence that ethnic divisions are counterproductive. Literally. http://t.co/1CEznpXzTH @cblatts shares the interestin…
Evidence that ethnic divisions are counterproductive. Literally. http://t.co/1CEznpXzTH @cblatts shares the interesting study
RT Evidence that ethnic divisions are counterproductive. Literally. – http://t.co/PysFlWA0MX
#Ethnic #conflict lowers firm productivity even when the fighting ends http://t.co/KyFH62uZgF Interesting read. #Inclusion
Evidence that ethnic divisions are counterproductive. Literally.: Ray Fisman gets credit for the title, Jonas … http://t.co/NeeYB9WS3a
“@cblatts: Ethnic conflict lowers firm productivity even when the fighting ends http://t.co/xqclTCjueV“
RT @cblatts: Evidence that ethnic divisions are counterproductive. Literally. http://t.co/iENS76Qe72
Evidence that ethnic divisions are counterproductive. Literally. http://t.co/kdnOvk9wAY
RT @cblatts: Ethnic conflict lowers firm productivity even when the fighting ends http://t.co/CMswgz2jLN
Moi said that Kenya was not ready for democracy because of the rancid nature of the tribalism. Those killed on the coast in late July were all Kikuyu outside their own tribal area. I arrived just after it and the Kikuyu taxi driver in Nairobi was telling me what they were going to do to for it. It is not just about flowers. So they need a field survey to prove it. Eh. Just buy the Daily Nation. Horrendous.
RT @cblatts: Ethnic conflict lowers firm productivity even when the fighting ends http://t.co/CMswgz2jLN
RT @cblatts: Ethnic conflict lowers firm productivity even when the fighting ends http://t.co/jqazs6KHwT via @MilanV
RT @cblatts: Ethnic conflict lowers firm productivity even when the fighting ends http://t.co/CMswgz2jLN
#pt also makes nice point abt field experiments- despite focus in field, this is great example of observational study http://t.co/wFEkzKVrw9
.@cblatts on new study suggesting ethnic divide hurt productivity, focus on heterogenous workplace in Kenya http://t.co/wFEkzKVrw9
RT @cblatts: Ethnic conflict lowers firm productivity even when the fighting ends http://t.co/CMswgz2jLN
RT @cblatts: Ethnic conflict lowers firm productivity even when the fighting ends http://t.co/CMswgz2jLN
http://t.co/vK8Z9tiDkv
RT @cblatts: Ethnic conflict lowers firm productivity even when the fighting ends http://t.co/CMswgz2jLN
RT @cblatts: Ethnic conflict lowers firm productivity even when the fighting ends http://t.co/CMswgz2jLN
RT @cblatts: Ethnic conflict lowers firm productivity even when the fighting ends http://t.co/CMswgz2jLN
Ethnic conflict lowers firm productivity even when the fighting ends http://t.co/CMswgz2jLN
RT @cblatts: Humans depress me yet again. Evidence from Kenyan flower farms. http://t.co/TcdtOniR82
RT @cblatts: Humans depress me yet again. Evidence from Kenyan flower farms. http://t.co/TcdtOniR82
‘Evidence that ethnic divisions are counterproductive. Literally.’ Via @cblatts #Kenya
http://t.co/owPUPULMKH
RT @cblatts: Evidence that ethnic divisions are counterproductive. Literally. http://t.co/iENS76Qe72
Evidence that ethnic divisions are counterproductive. Literally. http://t.co/T4WJaudTVo
RT @cblatts: Humans depress me yet again. Evidence from Kenyan flower farms. http://t.co/TcdtOniR82
RT @cblatts: Humans depress me yet again. Evidence from Kenyan flower farms. http://t.co/TcdtOniR82
RT @cblatts: Humans depress me yet again. Evidence from Kenyan flower farms. http://t.co/TcdtOniR82
RT @cblatts: Humans depress me yet again. Evidence from Kenyan flower farms. http://t.co/TcdtOniR82
RT @cblatts: Humans depress me yet again. Evidence from Kenyan flower farms. http://t.co/TcdtOniR82
RT @cblatts: Humans depress me yet again. Evidence from Kenyan flower farms. http://t.co/TcdtOniR82
Humans depress me yet again. Evidence from Kenyan flower farms. http://t.co/TcdtOniR82
Evidence that ethnic divisions are counterproductive. Literally. http://t.co/F0pGg9shX2
RT @cblatts: Evidence that ethnic divisions are counterproductive. Literally. http://t.co/iENS76Qe72
RT @cblatts: Evidence that ethnic divisions are counterproductive. Literally. http://t.co/iENS76Qe72
Evidence that ethnic divisions are counterproductive. Literally. http://t.co/t3zuQPHmQv
RT @cblatts: Evidence that ethnic divisions are counterproductive. Literally. http://t.co/iENS76Qe72
RT @cblatts: Evidence that ethnic divisions are counterproductive. Literally. http://t.co/u9RNfGpgv3
Divisions yes, but is more diversity bad? MT @cblatts: Evidence ethnic divisions are counterproductive. Literally. http://t.co/V785fRBZgY