Using unobtrusive sensors to measure and minimize Hawthorne effects: Evidence from cookstoves |
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| Affiliation: | 1. Department of Economics, Fordham University, United States;2. Charles H. Dyson School of Applied Economics and Management, Cornell University, United States;3. United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees, Geneva, Switzerland;4. Haas School of Business, University of California, Berkeley, United States;1. Berkeley Air Monitoring Group, 1900 Addison St. Suite 350, Berkeley, CA, 94704, USA;2. IIT Delhi, Hauz Khas, New Delhi, Delhi, 110016, India;3. Colorado State University, 430 N College Ave, Fort Collins, CO, 80524, USA;4. Global Alliance for Clean Cookstsoves, 1750 Pennsylvania Avenue Northwest, Washington, DC, 20006, USA;1. UNHCR, Rue de Montbrillant 92, Geneva 1201, Switzerland;2. Charles H. Dyson School of Applied Economics and Management, Cornell University, Ithaca, NY 14853, USA;3. Walter A. Haas School of Business, University of California, Berkeley, CA 94720, USA;1. Sanford School of Public Policy and Duke Global Health Institute, Duke University, Box 90239, Durham, NC 27708, USA;2. Lee Kuan Yew School of Public Policy, National University of Singapore, 469B Bukit Timah Road, Singapore 259771, Singapore;3. Nicholas School of the Environment and Duke Global Health Institute, Duke University, Box 90328, Durham, NC 27708, USA;4. RWI-Leibniz Institute for Economic Research, 45128, Essen, Germany;1. Rheinisch-Westfälisches Institut für Wirtschaftsforschung (RWI), Essen, Germany;2. AMERU, University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg, South Africa;1. Colorado School of Public Health, 13001 E 17th Pl, Aurora, CO 80045, USA;2. University of Colorado – Boulder, Boulder, CO 80309-0427, USA;3. Navrongo Health Research Centre, Behind Navrongo War Memorial Hospital, Navrongo, Ghana |
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| Abstract: | People act differently when they know they are being observed. This phenomenon, the Hawthorne effect, can bias estimates of program impacts. Unobtrusive sensors substituting for human observation can alleviate this bias. To demonstrate this potential, we used temperature loggers to measure fuel-efficient cookstoves as a replacement for three-stone fires. We find a large Hawthorne effect: when in-person measurement begins, participants increase fuel-efficient stove use approximately three hours/day (53%) and reduce three-stone fire use by approximately two hours/day (29%). When in-person measurement ends, participants reverse those changes. We then examine how this Hawthorne effect biases estimates of fuel use and pollution concentrations. Our results reinforce concerns about Hawthorne effects, especially in policy-relevant impact evaluations. By measuring the Hawthorne effect we permit researchers to correct for the bias it introduces. |
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| Keywords: | Observation bias Hawthorne effect Sensors Improved cookstoves Monitoring and evaluation Impact evaluation |
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