Peer Effects on Vaccination: Experimental Evidence from Rural Nigeria

RyokoSato and Yoshito Takasaki
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RyokoSato: Global Asia Institute, National University of Singapore

No CIRJE-F-1002, CIRJE F-Series from CIRJE, Faculty of Economics, University of Tokyo

Abstract: Understanding how and why social interactions matter for people's vaccination behavior is important for disease control. This paper conducts the first causal analysis of peer effects on vaccination in developing countries. We created exogenous variations in peers' vaccination behaviors by randomizing cash incentives for tetanus vaccine take-up among Nigerian women. Vaccine take-up among friends strongly increased women's take-up; having a friend getting vaccinated increases the likelihood that one receives a vaccination by 18.9 percentage points. The peer effects among friends are heterogeneous by one's belief about vaccine safety and access to health clinics in a way that is consistent with whether or not a woman visits a clinic with her friend. This provides evidence for collective action as a mechanism underlying the positive peer effect.

Pages: 31 pages
Date: 2016-03
New Economics Papers: this item is included in nep-afr, nep-exp, nep-hea, nep-sea, nep-soc and nep-ure
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Citations: View citations in EconPapers (2)

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Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:tky:fseres:2016cf1002

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