Forum Probes Impact of Social Programs

Students at a development economics panel were surprised to learn yesterday that 75 percent of condoms dispensed in India are not used for sex.

Sandip R. Sukhtankar, a PhD candidate in the economics department, told a group of about 30 undergraduates at a forum on “action research” that condoms, often distributed by nongovernmental organizations (NGOs) for free in India, provide highly-valued lubrication for use on spindles in the sari-making industry.

Sukhtankar’s point served to underscore the importance of quantifying the sometimes-uncertain impact that NGOs have on the developing world.

The forum, called “How To Turn Economic Research into Social Action in South Asia,” aimed to encourage quantitative research on the effectiveness of socially oriented programs—especially microfinance institutions (MFIs).

According to Professor of Economics Sendhil Mullainathan—one of the five panelists who spoke yesterday—NGOs and MFIs have been proliferating in South Asia in the past decade. What is lacking, Mullainathan and other panelists said, is data.

“How do we know any [of these] programs work, and if the impact is worth the money?” said Mullainathan, who is a development economist.

Besides encouraging students to look for summer opportunities in “action research,” Mullainathan also encouraged students to take a more active approach to their term papers and theses by “going out into the world and collect[ing] real data.”

Action research refers to the use of clinical trial methodology to evaluate the effectiveness of programs in the field. Action research studies also focus on tailoring programs to better reflect the local culture.

For example, in rural India, where income is determined by crop and animal breeding cycles, researchers are studying “how much flexibility microfinance clients can handle over loan payments that doesn’t increase the likelihood of default,” said assistant professor of economics Erica Field, who also spoke yesterday.

“They presented economic research not in a boring back-room sort of way but in a really active way and having an international component,” said Rohan Kekre ’08, who organized the event.

The forum was co-sponsored by the Harvard South Asian Association and the Harvard Undergraduate Economics Association.

“This event was actually not really our idea,” Kekre said. “The professors themselves were really keen on getting the word out to students.”