| Project/Area Number |
23K12479
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| Research Category |
Grant-in-Aid for Early-Career Scientists
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| Allocation Type | Multi-year Fund |
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| Review Section |
Basic Section 07040:Economic policy-related
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| Research Institution | Waseda University |
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Principal Investigator |
Dendup Ngawang 早稲田大学, 政治経済学術院, 講師(任期付) (00844549)
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| Project Period (FY) |
2023-04-01 – 2026-03-31
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| Project Status |
Granted (Fiscal Year 2023)
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| Budget Amount *help |
¥4,680,000 (Direct Cost: ¥3,600,000、Indirect Cost: ¥1,080,000)
Fiscal Year 2025: ¥650,000 (Direct Cost: ¥500,000、Indirect Cost: ¥150,000)
Fiscal Year 2024: ¥910,000 (Direct Cost: ¥700,000、Indirect Cost: ¥210,000)
Fiscal Year 2023: ¥3,120,000 (Direct Cost: ¥2,400,000、Indirect Cost: ¥720,000)
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| Keywords | electricity / social capital / land gradient / trust / social interaction / Electricity / Household energy / Time allocation / Firewood / Field Experiment |
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| Outline of Research at the Start |
Economic theory suggests that access to electricity will directly affect the household technology, reduce inefficiencies, and benefit households from time savings. Electricity in developing countries are also expected to displace the traditional cooking fuel such as firewood. The firewood collection and use of traditional fuel is time consuming. This study will examine effect of grid electricity on time use and self reported health (due to improvement in indoor air quality).
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| Outline of Annual Research Achievements |
There were two rounds of elections in Bhutan (national council and national assembly), so I could not obtain permission to conduct the field experiment. However, using secondary data collected for the same research, I examined the effect of grid electricity on social capital in rural Bhutan. I have completed the paper and submitted it to the journal "Empirical Economics." After receiving a "Revise and Resubmit" request, I resubmitted it, and it is currently under review. I also plan to conduct a field experiment in September 2024, and preparations are currently underway.
Social capital is now recognized as an important policy intervention due to its ability to overcome market failures, particularly through trust and cooperation. However, social capital is susceptible to external factors such as electricity provision. This study examines the effect of electricity on social capital, particularly household-level trust and social interactions. To address the endogeneity of electricity provision, we estimate a bivariate probit model using plausibly exogenous land gradient as an instrument. Our results show that in the short run, the effect of electricity on various measures of social capital is not distinguishable from zero. However, we do find some evidence of a heterogeneous effect, where female-headed and electrified households are positively correlated with social interaction and trust.
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| Current Status of Research Progress |
Current Status of Research Progress
3: Progress in research has been slightly delayed.
Reason
Last year, there was two rounds of election in Bhutan. I did not get permission to conduct field experiment in Bhutan.
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| Strategy for Future Research Activity |
Currently, I am in process of obtaining permission to conduct field experiment in Bhutan. I am also revising and updating the questionaries. I have also contacted Royal University of Bhutan to help me in getting their help to conduct field experiment and baseline survey. To mitigate the recent rise the cost, I am planning to conduct the baseline survey and experiment together.
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