Business Literacy and Development: Evidence from a Randomized Controlled Trial in Rural Mexico

B-Tier
Journal: Economic Development & Cultural Change
Year: 2020
Volume: 68
Issue: 2
Pages: 507 - 540

Score contribution per author:

0.673 = (α=2.02 / 3 authors) × 1.0x B-tier

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

Abstract

The poor in developing countries often run small enterprises, typically with low earnings, although lacking basic business skills. We offer a business skills course to female entrepreneurs in rural Mexico. We find that those randomly assigned to treatment have larger profits and revenues, serve a greater number of clients, and are more likely to use formal accounting techniques. These effects persist in the medium run. We present a simple model to interpret our results: we find that low-quality entrepreneurs appear slightly more likely to quit their business posttreatment and that the positive impacts of the treatment are increasing entrepreneurial quality.

Technical Details

RePEc Handle
repec:ucp:ecdecc:doi:10.1086/701213
Journal Field
Development
Author Count
3
Added to Database
2026-01-25