Online Buddies for Job Seekers: A Field Experiment

Bart K. de Koning, Paul Muller, Michèle Belot, Yvonne Engels, Didier Fouarge, Mario Keer, Philipp Kircher and Sandra Phlippen

No 34912, NBER Working Papers from National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc

Abstract: We design an online platform to connect unemployed job seekers with ‘buddies’: former job seekers who recently found employment. We focus on job seekers who search in occupations with poor prospects and buddies who successfully switched occupations. In a randomized controlled trial, we evaluate the impact of access to the platform on labor market outcomes. We find sizable effects. Thirteen to 18 months after getting access, initially unemployed job seekers are 6 percentage points (11%) more likely to be employed and earn e 226 more per month than those without access. The positive impact is concentrated among the long-term unemployed.

JEL-codes: C93 J62 J64 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2026-02
New Economics Papers: this item is included in nep-exp and nep-lab
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