Unintended consequences of rewards for student attendance: Results from a field experiment in Indian classrooms
Visaria, S. 
ORCID: 0000-0001-7406-4929, Dehejia, R., Chao, M. M. & Mukhopadhyay, A. ORCID: 0000-0002-8737-0383 (2016).
Unintended consequences of rewards for student attendance: Results from a field experiment in Indian classrooms.
Economics of Education Review, 54,
pp. 173-184.
doi: 10.1016/j.econedurev.2016.08.001
Abstract
In an experiment in non-formal schools in Indian slums, a reward scheme for attending a target number of school days increased average attendance when the scheme was in place, but had heterogeneous effects after it was removed. Among students with high baseline attendance, the incentive had no effect on attendance after it was discontinued, and test scores were unaffected. Among students with low baseline attendance, the incentive lowered post-incentive attendance, and test scores decreased. For these students, the incentive was also associated with lower interest in school material and lower optimism and confidence about their ability. This suggests incentives might have unintended long-term consequences for the very students they are designed to help the most.
| Publication Type: | Article |
|---|---|
| Additional Information: | © 2016. This manuscript version is made available under the CC-BY-NC-ND 4.0 license https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/(opens in new tab/window) |
| Publisher Keywords: | Educational economics, Incentives, Attendance, Motivation, Experiment |
| Subjects: | H Social Sciences > HB Economic Theory L Education > L Education (General) |
| Departments: | Bayes Business School > Finance |
| SWORD Depositor: |
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