We exploit novel data collected within a randomized controlled trial of a sanitation microcredit intervention to study how intra-household gender differences in perceptions of costs and benefits of sanitation impact investment decisions. We show that — as long as the wife is involved in household decision-making — the intra-household differences in perceptions we document influence borrowing and investments: uptake of the sanitation loan is higher among households where the wife has higher benefit perception, whereas successful conversion to a toilet depends on differences in monetary cost perceptions. The estimated effects are consistent with the predictions of a model of intra-household decision-making.
Authors
Associate Director
Britta is an IFS Associate Director, Associate Staff at the Department of Economics at the UC and Researcher at NIHR Obesity Policy Research Unit.
Research Fellow University of Kent
Bansi is a Research Fellow of the IFS, a Senior Lecturer of Economics at the University of Kent and also a Fellow at the Global Labor Organisation.
Harriet Olorenshaw
Zaki Wahhaj
Working Paper details
- DOI
- 10.1920/wp.ifs.2023.0423
- Publisher
- Institute for Fiscal Studies
Suggested citation
Augsburg, B et al. (2023). To invest or not to invest in sanitation: the role of intra-household gender differences in perceptions and bargaining power. 23/04. London: Institute for Fiscal Studies. Available at: https://ifs.org.uk/publications/invest-or-not-invest-sanitation-role-intra-household-gender-differences-perceptions-0 (accessed: 8 May 2024).
More from IFS
Understand this issue
Gender norms, violence and adolescent girls’ trajectories: Evidence from India
24 October 2022
What is the case for carbon taxes in developing countries?
Carbon pricing can be a powerful tool for reducing greenhouse gas emissions. What are the risks and opportunities from such policies in developing countries?
4 November 2021
If you can’t see it, you can’t be it: role models influence female junior doctors’ choice of medical specialty
24 April 2024
Policy analysis
Distributional analysis of Ghana’s tax system
18 December 2023
Three ways to improve the design of the UK’s overseas aid spending target
18 January 2024
FCDO renews TaxDev funding for the next seven years
19 September 2023
Academic research
Social proximity and misinformation: Experimental evidence from a mobile phone-based campaign in India
7 December 2023
Public service delivery, exclusion and externalities: Theory and experimental evidence from India
15 November 2023
Evaluating pricing health insurance in lower-income countries: A field experiment in India
14 March 2024