More Than Good Intentions

Posted on 27 February 2018 by Dean Karlan

A leading economist and researcher report from the front lines of a revolution in solving the world s most persistent problem.When it comes to global poverty, people are passionate and polarized At one extreme We just need to invest resources At the other We ve thrown billions down a sinkhole over the last fifty years and accomplished almost nothing.Dean Karlan and Jacob Appel present an entirely new approach that blazes an optimistic and realistic trail between these two extremes.In this pioneering book Karlan and Appel combine behavioral economics with worldwide field research They take readers with them into villages across Africa, India, South America, and the Philippines, where economic theory collides with real life They show how small changes in banking, insurance, health care, and other development initiatives that take into account human irrationality can drastically improve the well being of poor people everywhere.We in the developed world have found ways to make our own lives profoundly better We use new tools to spend smarter, save , eat better, and lead lives like the ones we imagine These tools can do the same for the impoverished Karlan and Appel s research, and those of some close colleagues, show exactly how.In America alone, individual donors contribute over two hundred billion to charity annually, three times as much as corporations, foundations, and bequests combined This book provides a new way to understand what really works to reduce poverty in so doing, it reveals how to better invest those billions and begin transforming the well being of the world. Free Read More Than Good Intentions [ author ] Dean Karlan [ Kindle ePUB or eBook ] – kino-fada.fr Disclaimer I received a free copy from the publisher via Goodreads First Reads program Team Sachs Team Easterly Try Team Evidence It might not be catchy, but it is definitely catching on in the development aid world If you are interested in what Team Evidence has to offer there is no better way than Karlan s and Appel s book More than Good Intentions The already proven successful, yet conversational, approach is used in this book to capture readers and explain the fascinating developmenDisclaimer I received a free copy from the publisher via Goodreads First Reads program Team Sachs Team Easterly Try Team Evidence It might not be catchy, but it is definitely catching on in the development aid world If you are interested in what Team Evidence has to offer there is no better way than Karlan s and Appel s book More than Good Intentions The already proven successful, yet conversational, approach is used in this book to capture readers and explain the fascinating development of New Economics and how it can demonstrate what programs work to improve the lives of the poor What will you encounter Professor Dean Karlan from Yale University and founder of Innovations for Poverty Action IPA , and Jacob Appel, a previous Project Associate for IPA, team up to narrate a compilation of stories of economic research conducted in developing countries, in topics of health, microfinance, savings, sexual education and such The ...This is a great book for people just starting out thinking about how to make their donations matter From a social science perspective, a lot of the experiments are quite clever I also learned a lot about the social context in which many of these problems are able to exist.I would probably recommend certain chapters of this book to people to read as alongside other material on the same topic For example, I liked the chapter on microfinance, and I thought provides the sort of background and commentary on the subject you might if someone was interested in learning a bit about the subject The section on malaria bed nets did a good job of very simply summarizing the Sachs Easterly debate and provided a bit of interesting additional evidence.Probably I would not reco I would probab...Excellent book which discusses the nature of charity and poverty, and which programs work best People do not always act in their most rational interests, and poverty restricts their options even further The author has done a lot of research and invest...I found this to be a terrific read on what I believe is the biggest problem here and abroad hint NOT drugs when I read thisthan 5 years ago.I didn t know individual U.S donors donatethan 200 billion every year And that till recently they didn t even know whether the products e.g., brilliant microcredit plans they were investing in were reaching customers, let alone if they worked as intended.If enough people think about what they re donating to we could actually save the world I m not being an idealist here For e.g., 40 mn people suffer from Trachoma, an effective prognosis like an eye surgery takes 20 So curing the w I didn t know individual U.S donors donatethan 200 billion every year And that till recently they didn t even know whether the products e.g., brilliant microcredit plans they were investing in were reaching customers, let alone if they worked as intended.If enough people think about what they re donating to we could actually save the world I m not being an idealist here For e.g., 40 mn people suffer from Trachoma, an effective prognosis like an eye surgery takes 20 So curing the world of Trachoma takes less than 0.5% of what we re donating now Of course we ll need the govt to ensure proper sanitation etc and preventincidences But the fact that as individuals we re giv...A broad brush stroke of development initiatives supported by randomized control trials, primarily conducted by Innovations for Poverty IPA I empathized with the dilemma presented by Peter Singer of our localized and immediate compulsion to give away away money if it was to save a child we could see drowning, but not to save someone remotely in poverty I particularly liked the willingness of the book to challenge accepted norms The book emphasized the need to market and sell development solu A broad brush stroke of development initiatives supported by randomized control trials, primarily conducted by Innovations for Poverty IPA I empathized with the dilemma presented by Peter Singer of our localized and immediate compulsion to give away away money if it was to save a child we could see drowning, but not ...Karlan and Appel make a good team They should doresearch of their own.Most of the research in this book are the same studies that Poor Economics covers It s slightlyentertainingly written than Esther Duflo and Abhijit Bannerjee s book, but as Karlan is an apprentice of Duflo and Bannerjee, it just seems like a lesser book that you could skip.I m a bit skeptical of the value of Karlan s site, stickK.com, andthan a bit annoyed that he shilled it in the middle of a book on the p Karlan and Appel make a good team They should doresearch of their own.Most of the research in this book are the same studies that Poor Economics covers It s slightlyentertainingly written than Esther Duflo and Abhijit Bannerjee s book, but as Karlan is an ...4.5 yeah, this book grew on me strong information and important studies run to determine true effectiveness of various aspects of development programs focused on a wide variety of issues, all of which central to addressing ma...I won this book from First Reads giveaway Should be an interesting read Thank you.

English
27 February 2018

Dean Karlan