Six Randomized Evaluations of Microcredit: Introduction and Further Steps
Download Document| Date Published | 2015 |
| Version | |
| Primary Author | Abhijit Banarjee, Dean Karlan and Jonathan Zinman |
| Other Authors | |
| Theme | Housing Microfinance |
| Country |
Abstract
Casual evidence on microcredit impacts informs theory,practice, and debates about its effectiveness as a development tool. The six randomized evaluations in this volume use a variety of sampling, data collection, experimental design, and econometric strategies to identify causal effects of expanded access to microcredit on borrowers and/or communities. These methods are deployed across an impressive range of locations - six countries on four continents, urban and rural areas - borrower characteristics, loan characteristics, and lender characteristics. Summarizing and interpreting results across studies,we note a consistent pattern of modestly positive, but not transformative , effects. We also discuss directions for future research.