Asian Development Bank

About: Asian Development Bank is a based out in . It is known for research contribution in the topics: Population & Financial crisis. The organization has 703 authors who have published 1847 publications receiving 39137 citations. The organization is also known as: ADB.

Enhancing the Validity and Cross-Cultural Comparability of Measurement in Survey Research

Abstract: We address two long-standing survey research problems: measuring complicated concepts, such as political freedom or efficacy, that researchers define best with reference to examples; and what to do when respondents interpret identical questions in different ways. Scholars have long addressed these problems with approaches to reduce incomparability, such as writing more concrete questions - with uneven success. Our alternative is to measure directly response category incomparability and to correct for it. We measure incomparability via respondents' assessments, on the same scale as the self-assessments to be corrected, of hypothetical individuals described in short vignettes. Since actual levels of the vignettes are invariant over respondents, variability in vignette answers reveals incomparability. Our corrections require either simple recodes or a statistical model designed to save survey administration costs. With analysis, simulations, and cross-national surveys, we show how response incomparability can drastically mislead survey researchers and how our approach can fix them.

Microfinance in Northeast Thailand: Who Benefits and How Much

Abstract: Summary This paper evaluates the outreach and impact of two microfinance programs in Thailand, controlling for endogenous self-selection and program placement. Results indicate that the wealthier villagers are significantly more likely to participate than the poor. Moreover, the wealthiest often become program committee members and borrow substantially more than rank-and-file members. However, local information on creditworthiness is also used to select members. The programs positively affect household welfare for committee members, but impact is insignificant for rank-and-file members. Policy recommendations include vigilance in targeting the poor, publicly disseminating the program rules and purpose, and introducing and enforcing eligibility criteria.

India's Patterns of Development: What Happened, What Follows

Abstract: India has followed an idiosyncratic pattern of development, certainly compared with other fast-growing Asian economies. While the importance of services rather than manufacturing is widely noted, within manufacturing India has emphasized skill-intensive rather than labor-intensive manufacturing, and industries with higher-than-average scale. Some of these distinctive patterns existed prior to the beginning of economic reforms in the 1980s, and stem from the idiosyncratic policies adopted after India's independence. Using the growth of fast-moving Indian states as a guide, we conclude that India may not revert to the pattern followed by other countries, despite reforms that have removed some policy impediments that contributed to India's distinctive path.