Funding: IDB Group's Gender and Diversity Knowledge Initiative (GDLab)

The objective of this project is to identify effective interventions that improve the working conditions and long-term financial security of self-employed women. To this end, we conducted a laboratory experiment with self-employed women in the cities of La Paz and Cochabamba, Bolivia.

Participants completed real-effort tasks to earn monetary rewards. They then decided how to allocate their earnings among immediate consumption, short-term savings, and long-term savings. The experiment introduced different behavioral interventions, including information nudges and reductions in the effort required to access specific savings options, to examine whether these strategies could increase investments in long-term secure savings and health-related financial protection.

Funding: International Labor Organization (ILO)

This project examines the factors associated with women's participation in self-employment and the consequences of this employment status for their economic well-being. Using nationally representative data from Bolivia's National Institute of Statistics (INE), we compared self-employed women with similar women employed in the formal sector to estimate differences in job quality and income.

The analysis also explored whether these patterns differed between Indigenous and non-Indigenous women, providing evidence on how ethnicity shapes labor market opportunities and outcomes. By identifying the characteristics associated with self-employment and quantifying its relationship with key labor market indicators, the project contributes to a better understanding of the challenges and inequalities faced by women in Bolivia's labor market.

Funding: Ministry of Environment and Water of Bolivia

This study evaluates the impact of gabion construction on productive activities in communities located along the Rocha River in Cochabamba, Bolivia. The research was conducted in two phases. A baseline data collection was carried out in 2021, prior to the implementation of the intervention, followed by an endline survey in 2025 to assess its effects.

In the baseline phase, households participated in a socioeconomic survey and a series of behavioral tasks designed to elicit individual risk preferences and time preferences. The endline data collection repeated these behavioral measures and gathered detailed information on household investments and productive activities. 

Funding: Agrecol Andes Foundation.

We conducted a study to identify effective behavioral interventions that encourage the consumption of ecologically produced foods among low-income consumers. The study was carried out in popular markets across different areas of Cochabamba, Bolivia, using a lab-in-the-field experimental design that allowed us to evaluate consumer decisions in a real shopping environment.

Participants were exposed to different behavioral nudges designed to promote healthier and more sustainable food choices. These interventions included informational messages highlighting the benefits of ecological foods, as well as a simple color-coded labeling system that classified products along a gradient according to their ecological characteristics. Colored ribbons attached to the products enabled consumers to easily identify and compare the environmental attributes of the available foods.

Funding: IADB

The study combines a theoretical framework with experimental evidence to better understand how different institutional arrangements influence trust and decision-making.

To test these ideas, we conducted a laboratory experiment with informal traders recruited from the cities of La Paz and El Alto, Bolivia. Participants made a series of economic decisions under different institutional settings, where we systematically varied the types of contracts and enforcement mechanisms governing their interactions. This experimental design allowed us to measure how changes in formal and informal institutions affected interpersonal trust and participants' willingness to engage in mutually beneficial exchanges.

Funding: Inter-American Development Bank (IADB)

In Bolivia, as in many Latin American countries, subnational governments rely heavily on intergovernmental transfers to finance public services. Strengthening local tax collection is therefore essential to increase fiscal sustainability and reduce this dependence. This project investigates whether insights from behavioral economics can help identify effective strategies to improve tax compliance at the municipal level.

To address this question, we designed and implemented a laboratory experiment with citizens from La Paz, Bolivia. Participants made tax compliance decisions under different institutional scenarios in which we systematically varied the frequency and duration of tax amnesties. The experiment examined how repeated and long-lasting amnesty programs influence tax payments, expectations about future amnesties, and individuals' willingness to comply with their tax obligations.

Funding: Universidad Adolfo Ibañez, Tabaconomia

This project examines smokers' preferences for licit and illicit tobacco products and identifies the factors that influence consumers' choices. The study combines a large-scale field survey with a discrete choice experiment (DCE) to better understand how product attributes shape demand for illicit tobacco products.

Data were collected in July and August 2025 in the metropolitan areas of La Paz–El Alto and Santa Cruz, Bolivia. A total of 1,266 adult smokers were recruited at high pedestrian traffic locations using age and geographic quotas to ensure a diverse sample. In addition to the discrete choice experiment, participants completed a comprehensive questionnaire on smoking habits, socioeconomic characteristics, nicotine dependence (Fagerström Test), and their ability to identify illicit tobacco products. The survey also included a list experiment to measure sensitive behaviors, as well as behavioral tasks eliciting time preferences, risk preferences, and prosocial preferences.

Funding: United Kingdom Government

This project evaluates an innovative school-based intervention that uses behavioral games to reduce bullying, racism, classism, and gender-based violence among secondary school students in La Paz, Bolivia. Rather than relying on traditional lectures, students participate in interactive games that recreate everyday social situations, encouraging them to reflect on their decisions, develop empathy, and practice positive bystander behavior. 

The project is being implemented as a randomized controlled trial in 40 secondary schools. Schools and classrooms are randomly assigned to treatment and control groups, allowing the research team to rigorously evaluate both the direct effects of the intervention and whether positive behaviors spread to students who did not participate directly. The study combines behavioral experiments with student surveys to measure changes in prosocial behavior, tolerance toward discrimination, attitudes related to gender-based violence, and overall bullying dynamics.