Recipients of PSC Small Grant Awards

There is substantial evidence that international out-migration, and the remittances that subsequently flow back to origin areas, bring substantial benefits at the household level in developing countries. Policies stimulating remittances could have positive impacts on a variety of development outcomes. To design effective policies, however, it is important to understand the microeconomics of remittance decision-making, including whether any behavioral biases play a role. This study aims to shed light on the behavioral biases (if any) that influence remittance decision-making by international migrants. Previous research is suggestive that limited attention, reference dependence, and status quo bias may play important roles. This proposal seeks funding to conduct focus groups and pilot surveys among migrants in Barcelona, Spain. These activities will help refine hypotheses and generate pilot data that can provide support for major research funding proposals to support a large-scale field experiment on the topic.