Rural labor supply and recall window sensitivity
Lack of availability of administrative records on informal and seasonal labor participation dictates reliance on self-reported measures in many rural settings in developing countries. A common survey approach relies on annual recall to capture labor activities. Using a panel of rural households in M...
| Main Authors: | , , |
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| Format: | Journal Article |
| Language: | Inglés |
| Published: |
Oxford University Press
2026
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| Subjects: | |
| Online Access: | https://hdl.handle.net/10568/180440 |
| _version_ | 1855515458743042048 |
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| author | Ambler, Kate Herskowitz, Sylvan Maredia, Mywish K. |
| author_browse | Ambler, Kate Herskowitz, Sylvan Maredia, Mywish K. |
| author_facet | Ambler, Kate Herskowitz, Sylvan Maredia, Mywish K. |
| author_sort | Ambler, Kate |
| collection | Repository of Agricultural Research Outputs (CGSpace) |
| description | Lack of availability of administrative records on informal and seasonal labor participation dictates reliance on self-reported measures in many rural settings in developing countries. A common survey approach relies on annual recall to capture labor activities. Using a panel of rural households in Malawi, this study conducts a survey experiment to test the effect of annual recall on reported labor supply relative to quarterly interviews using ninety-day recall windows. Annual recall reduces reported labor participation and months worked by 20 percent. These reductions are greater for activities further in the past and when labor supply is reported by proxy. The profile of households’ primary respondents, predominantly male and older, can induce meaningful biases against women and youth. The study additionally shows that recall window choice can significantly alter estimates of the relationship between labor supply and education. These findings are especially relevant for impact evaluations and studies with constrained sample sizes. |
| format | Journal Article |
| id | CGSpace180440 |
| institution | CGIAR Consortium |
| language | Inglés |
| publishDate | 2026 |
| publishDateRange | 2026 |
| publishDateSort | 2026 |
| publisher | Oxford University Press |
| publisherStr | Oxford University Press |
| record_format | dspace |
| spelling | CGSpace1804402026-01-22T18:02:28Z Rural labor supply and recall window sensitivity Ambler, Kate Herskowitz, Sylvan Maredia, Mywish K. labour rural areas rural employment surveys measurement labour market Lack of availability of administrative records on informal and seasonal labor participation dictates reliance on self-reported measures in many rural settings in developing countries. A common survey approach relies on annual recall to capture labor activities. Using a panel of rural households in Malawi, this study conducts a survey experiment to test the effect of annual recall on reported labor supply relative to quarterly interviews using ninety-day recall windows. Annual recall reduces reported labor participation and months worked by 20 percent. These reductions are greater for activities further in the past and when labor supply is reported by proxy. The profile of households’ primary respondents, predominantly male and older, can induce meaningful biases against women and youth. The study additionally shows that recall window choice can significantly alter estimates of the relationship between labor supply and education. These findings are especially relevant for impact evaluations and studies with constrained sample sizes. 2026 2026-01-22T18:02:27Z 2026-01-22T18:02:27Z Journal Article https://hdl.handle.net/10568/180440 en https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jdeveco.2021.102736 Open Access Oxford University Press Ambler, Kate; Herskowitz, Sylvan; and Maredia, Mywish K. Rural labor supply and recall window sensitivity. World Bank Economic Review. Article in press. First published online on October 29, 2025. https://doi.org/10.1093/wber/lhaf025 |
| spellingShingle | labour rural areas rural employment surveys measurement labour market Ambler, Kate Herskowitz, Sylvan Maredia, Mywish K. Rural labor supply and recall window sensitivity |
| title | Rural labor supply and recall window sensitivity |
| title_full | Rural labor supply and recall window sensitivity |
| title_fullStr | Rural labor supply and recall window sensitivity |
| title_full_unstemmed | Rural labor supply and recall window sensitivity |
| title_short | Rural labor supply and recall window sensitivity |
| title_sort | rural labor supply and recall window sensitivity |
| topic | labour rural areas rural employment surveys measurement labour market |
| url | https://hdl.handle.net/10568/180440 |
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