Peer Networks and Entrepreneurship: A Pan-African RCT

Arbeitspapier

Can large-scale peer interaction foster entrepreneurship and innovation? We conducted an RCT involving almost 5,000 entrepreneurs from 49 African countries. All were enrolled in an online business course, and the treatment involved random assignment to either face-to-face or virtual (Internet-mediated) interaction. We find positive treatment effects on both the submission of business plans and their quality, provided interaction displays some intermediate diversity. Network effects are also significant on both outcomes, although diversity plays a different role for each. This shows that effective peer interaction can be feasibly implemented quite broadly but must also be designed carefully, in view of the pursued objectives.

Object Details

• Language: Englisch

References and Relationships

• Bibliographic citation: Series: IZA Discussion Papers ; No. 12848

Classification and Topics

• Classification: Wirtschaft ; Field Experiments ; Microeconomic Policy: Formulation, Implementation, and Evaluation ; Network Formation and Analysis: Theory ; Microeconomic Analyses of Economic Development ; Innovation and Invention: Processes and Incentives ; Social Innovation
• Subject: social networks ; peer effects ; entrepreneurship ; innovation ; semantic analysis

Contributors, Places and Time

• Event: Geistige Schöpfung
• (who): Vega-Redondo, Fernando ; Pin, Paolo ; Ubfal, Diego ; Benedetti-Fasil, Cristiana ; Brummitt, Charles ; Rubera, Gaia ; Hovy, Dirk ; Fornaciari, Tommaso
• Event: Veröffentlichung
• (who): Institute of Labor Economics (IZA)
• (where): Bonn
• (when): 2019

Further information

• Handle: http://hdl.handle.net/10419/215244
• Last update: 10.03.2025, 11:42 AM CET