Res authors Detail
Verónica Frisancho is a senior research economist in the Research Department of the Inter-American Development Bank (IDB). Verónica’s work can best be described as applied microeconomics, and her main field of specialization is Development Economics. Her research in these areas includes an emphasis on education, labor markets in developing countries, domestic violence, and financial inclusion.
She has published chapters in books and has both published and refereed for several international peer-reviewed journals. Veronica has presented her work in several specialized conferences for academics and policymakers from around the world. She holds a Ph.D. in Economics from Pennsylvania State University and a bachelor’s degree in Economics from the Universidad del Pacífico in Lima, Peru.
LATEST OPINION PIECES
Many factors lie behind observed gender gaps in labor market outcomes in Latin American and the Caribbean. But one remains largely invisible: transport and urban mobility. Women in the region have greater childcare responsibilities and do more unpaid work at home than their male partners. As a study we recently conducted in the metropolitan area […]
The post Women and Urban Mobility: An Unfinished Agenda appeared first on Ideas Matter.
As the COVID-19 pandemic struck the Southern Cone countries of Latin America, gender equality gaps, already far too wide, suffered real setbacks, reflecting the fragility of the gains made in recent years. Women took on most of the additional workload at home due to the closure of schools and care facilities, and their participation in […]
The post Closing Gender Gaps in the Southern Cone: The Path for Growth appeared first on Ideas Matter.
The Latin America and the Caribbean region still has a long way to go when it comes to closing the gender and diversity gaps. One of the biggest challenges is closing existing knowledge gaps on the inequalities facing women, indigenous peoples, persons of African descent, persons with disabilities, and LGBTQ+ persons. Which interventions contribute to […]
The post Do You Want Your Research to Help Close the Gender and Diversity Gaps? This Call for Proposals Is for You appeared first on Ideas Matter.
It has long been understood that financial literacy and financial inclusion can increase household’s financial resilience. That is especially true in times of economic crises, such as that of the current Covid-19 pandemic. People with financial skills can better plan, save for retirement, and accumulate more wealth. Adept at modern financial technologies, like cards, apps and online payment facilities, they are also […]
The post Financial Literacy in Suriname appeared first on Ideas Matter.
Latin America and the Caribbean is one of the most unequal regions of the world, with the richest 10% of the population earning 22 times more than the poorest 10%. Inequalities in the region stem in part from cultural origin, gender, ethnicity, and sexual orientation and are deeply rooted in history and social norms. While […]
The post The New GDLab Takes on Discrimination and Inequality appeared first on Ideas Matter.
The COVID-19 pandemic has exposed households’ financial fragility. Prior to the pandemic, six out of ten people in Latin America and the Caribbean reported they lack the resources to cover an emergency, and among the poorest quintile, the figure was only two out of ten. As in the 2008 financial crisis, COVID-19 has revealed the […]
The post Financial Literacy in the Caribbean: The Case of Barbados appeared first on Ideas Matter.
Over the last 30 years, women have made significant gains in Latin America and the Caribbean. Maternal deaths in childbirth have dropped by more than half, young women are slightly more educated than men, and the region recorded the highest rate of convergence between male and female labor force participation from 1990-2015 compared to other […]
The post Gender Gaps in the Time of Covid-19 appeared first on Ideas Matter.
In recent years, Latin America and the Caribbean has made important strides in improving access to financial services and products. But use of these services remains stubbornly low. Only around 54% of the region’s people have an account at a financial institution or through a mobile money provider, according to the World Bank’s Findex. Moreover, […]
The post The Surprising Impact of Teaching Financial Literacy in Schools appeared first on Ideas Matter.
To become an adult without knowing how to manage money is to risk financial instability, debt, and a meager retirement. Moreover, most evidence suggests it is extremely difficult to change the financial behavior of adults. They may not have time for financial literacy programs and, besides, may be too set in their ways. On the […]
The post Financial Literacy Programs Can Benefit Both Children and Adults appeared first on Ideas Matter.
Education has long been promoted as a means for changing women’s position in society. Growing income, opportunity and exposure to more equal social norms, it is thought, should help protect women against abuse, not least by allowing them to choose better partners. However, recent evidence shows that the role of education as a protective factor […]
The post Can Domestic Violence Be Accurately Measured? appeared first on Ideas Matter.
Sooner or later all teenagers consider who they want to be when they grow up. It is a defining moment for their sense of self and future, and intimately linked with their ability to seize what they want from life. Will I be a cabdriver or carpenter? Clerk or cashier? Or can I just as […]
The post Better Tools for Poor Kids Choosing Schools appeared first on Ideas Matter.
We buy everything we crave at the supermarket; purchase the latest electronic gizmos the minute they appear; and download movies on the internet with abandon. Then we wonder why we have no money for a new car or savings for retirement. What in the world is wrong with us? The truth is that we aren’t […]
The post Fighting the Spending Demon appeared first on Ideas Matter.
Sometimes we need a little push to do things that we know are good for us. We find a “gym buddy” to somehow commit to work out. Or we bet money with a friend on who will be able to spend a month without smoking. When it comes to saving, these nudges are also important […]
The post Helping Latin Americans Save appeared first on Ideas Matter.
Are Latin Americans less prone to save? When compared to regions with similar levels of economic development, why does Latin America fare poorly in terms of saving rates? Though several factors shape saving rates, a few are particularly important in generating these gaps at the household level. In particular, past experiences, psychological traits, and even […]
The post Five Reasons Why Latin Americans Save Less appeared first on Ideas Matter.
A piggy bank is a classic childhood favorite, one that has endured for generations. In the last 20 years, many children were encouraged to put away their pennies after getting to know the piggy bank Hamm, a character in the Toy Story franchise. But what may feel like a game to kids is in fact […]
The post Turning a Piggy Bank into a Savings Account in Peru appeared first on Ideas Matter.
Working Papers
Better Luck Next Time: Learning through Retaking (with Kala Krishna and Cemile Yavas)
Affirmative Action in Higher Education in India: Targeting, Catch Up, and Mismatch (with Kala Krishna)
Employment Protection Legislation in India and its Effects on Productivity in the Organized Manufacturing Sector (with Sean Dougherty and Kala Krishna)
Business Training for Microfinance Clients: How it Matters and for Whom? (with Dean Karlan and Martin Valdivia). Poverty and Economic Policy Research Network Working Paper No. PMMA-2008-11, Working Paper Series.
“Retaking in High Stakes Exams: Is Less More?”, with Kala Krishna and Sergey Lychagin, submitted.
“Learning About Oneself: The Effects of Signaling Academic Ability on School Choice”, with Matteo Bobba, submitted.
“Preventing Gender Biased Violence among Microfinance Clients in Peru”, with Jorge Agüero.
“Misreporting in Sensitive Health Behaviors and Its Impact on Treatment Effects: An Application to Intimate Partner Violence”, with Jorge Agüero.
“Ability Peer Effects, Academic Achievement, and Student Behavior in Secondary Schools”, with Matias Busso.
“The Effect of Programmed Saving Products in the Dominican Republic”, with Dean Karlan, Martin
Valdivia, and Sendhil Mullainathan.
“Financial Profiles of the Base of the Pyramid in LAC: The case of Peru, Mexico, and Brazil”, with Jonathan Karver.
“Financial Education for the Youth: The Impact on Peruvian Secondary Students”
“Coverage in Secondary Schooling: What works?”
Publications
“Better Luck Next Time: Learning through Retaking ” with Kala Krishna, Sergey Lychagin, and Cemile Yavas, Journal of Economic Behavior and Organization, Vol. 125: 120-135, 2016.
“Affirmative Action in Higher Education in India: Targeting, Catch Up, and Mismatch at IIT Delhi ” with Kala Krishna, Higher Education, Vol. 71(5): 611-649, 2016.
“State-Level Labor Reform and Firm-Level Productivity in India ” with Sean Dougherty and Kala Krishna, India Policy Forum (2013-2014), Vol. 10.
“Signaling Creditworthiness in Peruvian Microfinance Markets: The Role of Information Sharing ”, The B.E. Journal of Economic Analysis & Policy, Vol. 12(1) (Advances), Article 44, 2012.
“International Migration and the Education of Children: Evidence from Lima, Peru ” with R. S. Oropesa, Population Research and Policy Review, Vol. 30(4): 591-618, 2011.
“Retaking in High Stakes Exams: Is Less More?”, with Kala Krishna and Sergey Lychagin, International Economic Review. (Forthcoming)