Social learning in a heterogeneous population: technology diffusion in the Indian Green Revolution

• 成果类型: Article
• 署名作者: Munshi, K
• 署名单位: Brown University
• 刊物名称: JOURNAL OF DEVELOPMENT ECONOMICS
• ISSN/ISSBN: 0304-3878
• DOI: 10.1016/j.jdeveco.2003.03.003
• 发表日期: 2004
• 页码: 185-213
• 关键词: Social learning; technology diffusion

摘要

Information flows are weaker in a heterogeneous population when the performance of a new technology is sensitive to unobserved individual characteristics, preventing individuals from learning from neighbors' experiences. This characterization of social learning is tested with wheat and rice data from the Indian Green Revolution. The rice-growing regions display greater heterogeneity in growing conditions and the new rice varieties were also sensitive to unobserved farm characteristics. Wheat growers respond strongly to neighbors' experiences, as expected, while rice growers do not. Rice growers also appear to experiment more on their own land to compensate for their lack of social information. (C) 2003 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.