Fast, Easy and Cheap Job Matching : Social Networks in Bangladesh
This paper uncovers the reason why social networks are used in a job market. The data are novel: a nationally representative matched employer-employee data set in Bangladesh with detailed information, including direct measures of the use of social...
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| Format: | Working Paper |
| Language: | English en_US |
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World Bank, Washington, DC
2017
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| Online Access: | http://documents.worldbank.org/curated/en/953151497983995134/Fast-easy-and-cheap-job-matching-social-networks-in-Bangladesh http://hdl.handle.net/10986/27307 |
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okr-10986-273072021-06-08T14:42:47Z Fast, Easy and Cheap Job Matching : Social Networks in Bangladesh Matsuda, Norihiko Nomura, Shinsaku SOCIAL NETWORKS LABOR MARKET JOB SEARCH REFERRALS This paper uncovers the reason why social networks are used in a job market. The data are novel: a nationally representative matched employer-employee data set in Bangladesh with detailed information, including direct measures of the use of social networks. The empirical analysis shows that compared with those who used open channels to find jobs, the employees who used social networks found jobs more easily, have lower observable abilities, and achieved lower employment outcomes conditional on observable and unobservable abilities. These results are robust whether firm-occupation fixed effects are controlled for or not. By comparing these findings with theoretical predictions, the paper concludes that social networks play the role as fast and easy but narrow-spectrum matching. That is, social networks allow job seekers to find jobs quickly and easily and thereby reduce search costs, but the types of jobs available from social networks are narrower than those from open channels. As a consequence, those who choose to use social networks are more likely to end up having mismatched jobs, that is jobs in which they cannot take advantage of their specialties. In the context of developing countries, a considerable number of poor job seekers may use social networks out of necessity even if the returns to finding good-match jobs through open channels are sufficiently high. 2017-06-21T20:42:09Z 2017-06-21T20:42:09Z 2017-06 Working Paper http://documents.worldbank.org/curated/en/953151497983995134/Fast-easy-and-cheap-job-matching-social-networks-in-Bangladesh http://hdl.handle.net/10986/27307 English en_US Policy Research Working Paper;No. 8107 CC BY 3.0 IGO http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0/igo World Bank World Bank, Washington, DC Publications & Research Publications & Research :: Policy Research Working Paper South Asia Bangladesh |
| repository_type |
Digital Repository |
| institution_category |
Foreign Institution |
| institution |
Digital Repositories |
| building |
World Bank Open Knowledge Repository |
| collection |
World Bank |
| language |
English en_US |
| topic |
SOCIAL NETWORKS LABOR MARKET JOB SEARCH REFERRALS |
| spellingShingle |
SOCIAL NETWORKS LABOR MARKET JOB SEARCH REFERRALS Matsuda, Norihiko Nomura, Shinsaku Fast, Easy and Cheap Job Matching : Social Networks in Bangladesh |
| geographic_facet |
South Asia Bangladesh |
| relation |
Policy Research Working Paper;No. 8107 |
| description |
This paper uncovers the reason why
social networks are used in a job market. The data are
novel: a nationally representative matched employer-employee
data set in Bangladesh with detailed information, including
direct measures of the use of social networks. The empirical
analysis shows that compared with those who used open
channels to find jobs, the employees who used social
networks found jobs more easily, have lower observable
abilities, and achieved lower employment outcomes
conditional on observable and unobservable abilities. These
results are robust whether firm-occupation fixed effects are
controlled for or not. By comparing these findings with
theoretical predictions, the paper concludes that social
networks play the role as fast and easy but narrow-spectrum
matching. That is, social networks allow job seekers to find
jobs quickly and easily and thereby reduce search costs, but
the types of jobs available from social networks are
narrower than those from open channels. As a consequence,
those who choose to use social networks are more likely to
end up having mismatched jobs, that is jobs in which they
cannot take advantage of their specialties. In the context
of developing countries, a considerable number of poor job
seekers may use social networks out of necessity even if the
returns to finding good-match jobs through open channels are
sufficiently high. |
| format |
Working Paper |
| author |
Matsuda, Norihiko Nomura, Shinsaku |
| author_facet |
Matsuda, Norihiko Nomura, Shinsaku |
| author_sort |
Matsuda, Norihiko |
| title |
Fast, Easy and Cheap Job Matching : Social Networks in Bangladesh |
| title_short |
Fast, Easy and Cheap Job Matching : Social Networks in Bangladesh |
| title_full |
Fast, Easy and Cheap Job Matching : Social Networks in Bangladesh |
| title_fullStr |
Fast, Easy and Cheap Job Matching : Social Networks in Bangladesh |
| title_full_unstemmed |
Fast, Easy and Cheap Job Matching : Social Networks in Bangladesh |
| title_sort |
fast, easy and cheap job matching : social networks in bangladesh |
| publisher |
World Bank, Washington, DC |
| publishDate |
2017 |
| url |
http://documents.worldbank.org/curated/en/953151497983995134/Fast-easy-and-cheap-job-matching-social-networks-in-Bangladesh http://hdl.handle.net/10986/27307 |
| _version_ |
1764464288996524032 |