Biomedical subjects

Guy Stecklov

Publications and source records attributed to Guy Stecklov.

4 recordsLinked to original sources

PubMed2005

Do conditional cash transfers influence migration? A study using experimental data from the Mexican PROGRESA program.

Prior research on Mexican migration has shown that social networks and economic incentives play an important role in determining migration outcomes. We use experimental data from PROGRESA, Mexico's primary poverty-reduction program, to evaluate the effects of conditional cash transfers on migration both domestically and to the United States. Our study complements a growing body of literature aimed at overcoming longstanding hurdles to the establishment of causal validity in empirical studies of migration. Analysis based on the data collected before and after the program's onset shows that conditional transfers reduce U.S. migration but not domestic migration. The data also enable us to explore the role of existing family and community migration networks. The results show that migration networks strongly influence migration, but that the effect of conditional transfers on migration is apparently not mediated by existing migration network structures. Our results suggest that conditional transfers may be helpful in managing rural out-migration, particularly to the United States.

Adolescent↗

PubMed2004

Terror attacks influence driving behavior in Israel.

Terror attacks in Israel produce a temporary lull in light accidents followed by a 35% spike in fatal accidents on Israeli roads 3 days after the attack. Our results are based on time-series analysis of Israeli traffic flows, accidents, and terror attacks from January 2001 through June 2002. Whereas prior studies have focused on subjective reports of posttraumatic stress, our study shows a population-level behavioral response to violent terror attacks.

Journal Article↗

PubMed2003

The effect of structural characteristics on family planning program performance in Côte d'Ivoire and Nigeria.

This paper uses Côte d'Ivoire and Nigeria survey data on both supply and demand characteristics to examine how structural and demographic factors influence family planning provision and cost. The model, which takes into account the endogenous influence of service provision on average cost, explains provision well but poorly explains what influences service cost. We show that both size and specialization matter. In both countries, vertical (exclusive family planning) facilities provide significantly more contraception than integrated medical establishments. In the Nigeria sample, larger facilities also offer services at lower average cost. Since vertical facilities tend to be large, they at most incur no higher unit costs than integrated facilities. These results are consistent across most model specifications, and are robust to corrections for endogenous facility placement in Nigeria. Model results and cost recovery information point to the relative efficiency of the International Planned Parenthood Federation, which operates large, mostly vertically organized facilities.

Catchment Area, Health↗

PubMed2002

Defining health inequality: why Rawls succeeds where social welfare theory fails.

While there has been an important increase in methodological and empirical studies on health inequality, not much has been written on the theoretical foundation of health inequality measurement. We discuss several reasons why the classic welfare approach, which is the foundation of income inequality analysis, fails to provide a satisfactory foundation for health inequality analysis. We propose an alternative approach which is more closely linked to the WHO concept of equity in health and is also consistent with the ethical principles espoused by Rawls [A Theory of Justice. Harvard University Press, Cambridge, MA, 1971]. This approach in its simplest form, is shown to be closely related to the concentration curve when health and income are positively related. Thus, the criteria presented in our paper provide an important theoretical foundation for empirical analysis using the concentration curve. We explore the properties of these approaches by developing policy scenarios and examining how various ethical criteria affect government strategies for targeting health interventions.

Efficiency↗