A number of authors have documented a higher occurrence of tree seedlings below the canopy of adult trees than in openings, particularly in mesic conditions, where increases in resources in openings stimulate the growth of competing shade‐intolerant forbs. These patterns may be explained by indirect facilitation. Indirect facilitation has been mainly explored using models, and too few experimental studies have been conducted to understand the conditions under which it is likely to occur. We test here the indirect facilitation model in natural openings of subalpine forests and explore the relationship that may exist between species response to indirect interactions and life‐history traits of target seedlings. Two evergreen conifers (Picea abies and Abies alba) and two deciduous broad‐leaved angiosperms (Fagus sylvatica and Acer pseudoplatanus) that dominate the mixed mesic forests of the northern external French Alps were planted in a tall forb community invading natural forest openings. Seedlings were grown for three growing seasons, with and without competing forbs, and with and without a 50% shade cloth, simulating the relatively open canopy of the surrounding forests. The direct effects of shade were negative for all four species, but the conifers were much more negatively affected by shade than the angiosperms. Shade strongly reduced aboveground biomass of competing forbs, which improved the availability of nitrogen for the tree seedlings. However, because the indirect positive effect of competition release was outweighed by the direct negative effect of light reduction, the net effect was negative for all four species. Species' responses to the indirect effects of shade were correlated with species traits; additional competition was the highest for the most conservative and shade‐intolerant species, Picea, and the lowest for the most nutrient‐demanding and shade‐tolerant species, Acer. We conclude that species traits may determine how a species responds to indirect interactions, but that further studies are needed to explore the real potential of indirect facilitation to determine patterns of tree seedling distribution.

Aspirations, or a lack thereof, have recently gained the attention of economists as a behavioral constraint to future-oriented behavior and investment. In this paper we empirically test the theories of aspirations failure and formation articulated in Appadurai (2004), Ray (2006), and Genicot and Ray (2015) using a unique dataset from rural Nepal. We ask two questions: (1) What is the relationship between aspirations and future-oriented behavior? and (2) To what extent are an individual's aspirations associated with the observable characteristics of those around her? We find that aspirations correspond with future-oriented economic behavior as predicted by theory: investment in the future increases with aspirations up to a certain point, but if the gap between one's current status and aspirations becomes too large, investment subsequently declines. We also find that one's aspirations are associated with outcomes of those in her social network of higher, but not lower, status. Together these findings provide empirical evidence that aspirations, which may be a social phenomenon, can either stimulate development or reinforce poverty. Recent theoretical work has revealed a complex relationship between aspirations, investment, and poverty (

Agricultural technologies typically spread as farmers learn about profitability through social networks. This process can be nuanced, however, when net returns for some farmers may not be positive. We investigate how social learning influences demand for a resource-conserving technology in eastern Uttar Pradesh, India. We identify potential adopters through an experimental auction and randomly select a subset to adopt. We exploit this variation in adoption across networks to estimate network effects on demand for the technology one year later using a second auction. Technology benefits vary, and network effects are completely conditional on benefits. Having a benefiting adopter in one's network increased demand by over 50 percent, whereas having a non-benefiting adopter had no effect. These effects are strong enough to bring average demand in line with expected benefits. For many farmers, however, demand remains below the market price, suggesting that network effects will lead to increased-but not rapid widespread-adoption.JEL Codes: O13, O33, Q12

This study assesses both the demand for and effectiveness of an index insurance product designed to help smallholder farmers in Bangladesh manage crop production risk during the monsoon season. Villages were randomized into either an insurance treatment or a comparison group, and discounts and rebates were randomly allocated across treatment villages to encourage insurance take-up and to allow for the estimation of the price-elasticity of insurance demand. Among those offered insurance, we find demand to be fairly price elastic, with discounts significantly more successful in stimulating demand than rebates. Purchasing insurance yields both ex ante risk management effects as well as ex post income effects on agricultural production practices. The risk management effects lead to an expansion of cultivated area with concomitant increases in agricultural input expenditures during the monsoon season. The income effects lead to more intensive rice production during the subsequent dry season, with more intensive use of both irrigation and fertilizers, resulting in higher yields and higher total rice production.

Journal articleIFPRI3; ISIEPTDP