Labor Market Discrimination in Lima, Peru: Evidence from a Field Experiment

B-Tier
Journal: World Development
Year: 2014
Volume: 58
Issue: C
Pages: 83-94

Score contribution per author:

1.005 = (α=2.01 / 2 authors) × 1.0x B-tier

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

Abstract

We analyze labor discrimination in Peru, a fast-growing country where much anecdotal evidence suggests the presence of discriminatory practices in everyday life. Using surnames (indigenous/white) as a proxy for race, we sent 4820 fictitious CVs in response to 1205 real job vacancies for professional, technical, and unskilled jobs in Lima. Overall, whites receive more callbacks than indigenous applicants, and beautiful applicants receive more callbacks than homely-looking ones. The magnitude and significance of the racial and beauty gaps in callbacks substantially vary by job category. In particular, better looks only seem to matter in getting more callbacks for professional jobs.

Technical Details

RePEc Handle
repec:eee:wdevel:v:58:y:2014:i:c:p:83-94
Journal Field
Development
Author Count
2
Added to Database
2026-01-25