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Aine Seitz McCarthy
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Does free mean worthless?

12/3/2014

3 Comments

 
Picture
Don't worry, this insecticide-treated mosquito bed net will keep you malaria-free while you pee.
From Poor Economics:

There is a "psychological sunk cost" effect- people are more likely to make use of something they have paid a lot for. In addition, people may judge quality by price: Things may be judged to be valueless precisely because they are cheap...for example, these subsides can backfire- usage will be low because the price is so low. 

Malaria bed nets, for example, being used as outhouse curtains. I'd seen the rumored bed nets being used as fishing nets and chicken coops, but loved this prime example of bed net creative use in Meatu, Tanzania. Disheartening? Yes.

But don't lose hope:

However, there are now a number of careful experiments that suggest that such anecdotes are oversold. Several studies that have tested whether people use things less because they got them for free found no evidence of such behavior (Cohen and Dupas, 2010).



3 Comments
Jason Kerwin link
12/3/2014 10:20:55 am

Do ITNs work on flies? This could actually be a brilliant idea.

Reply
Aine
12/4/2014 01:38:40 am

Ha. Except that this particular style of bed net outhouse door does not also double as a roof.

Reply
Jason Kerwin link
12/4/2014 04:03:06 am

One claim I've heard made about ITNs is that you get most of the benefit even if the net doesn't cover your body, on account of the insecticide. So just having it in the same room as you is helpful.

On the other hand, I've had many an experience where mosquitoes spend all night bashing themselves against my bednet, so that's a bit hard to believe.

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    Aine Seitz McCarthy

    International development, economics and some pretty ambitious ideas from a stubborn graduate student clinging to her sense of adventure.


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