Social interaction and technology adoption: Experimental evidence from improved cookstoves in Mali

B-Tier
Journal: World Development
Year: 2021
Volume: 144
Issue: C

Authors (7)

Bonan, Jacopo (RFF-CMCC European Institute on...) Battiston, Pietro (Scuola Superiore Sant'Anna) Bleck, Jaimie (not in RePEc) LeMay-Boucher, Philippe (not in RePEc) Pareglio, Stefano (Università Cattolica del Sacro...) Sarr, Bassirou (not in RePEc) Tavoni, Massimo (not in RePEc)

Score contribution per author:

0.287 = (α=2.01 / 7 authors) × 1.0x B-tier

α: calibrated so average coauthorship-adjusted count equals average raw count

Abstract

Easy-to-use and low-risk technologies, which require little investment and potentially provide health and environmental benefits, often have low adoption rates. Using a randomized experiment in urban Mali, we assess the impact of a training session in which information on an improved cookstove (ICS) is provided along with the opportunity to purchase the product at the market price. We find strong effects from our invitation to the session on ICS ownership and usage while no discernible effects on product knowledge or household welfare. We find that some diffusion occurs beyond the intervention and provide evidence on the role of social interaction, mostly through imitation

Technical Details

RePEc Handle
repec:eee:wdevel:v:144:y:2021:i:c:s0305750x21000796
Journal Field
Development
Author Count
7
Added to Database
2026-01-24