Hussam, Reshmaan N. →

Examining Race and Mass Incarceration in the United States

The late 20th century saw dramatic growth in incarceration rates in the United States. Of the more than 2.3 million people in US prisons, jails, and detention centers in 2020, 60 percent were Black or Latinx. Harvard Business School assistant professor Reshmaan Hussam probes the assumptions underlying the current prison system, with its huge racial disparities, and considers what could be done to address the crisis of the American criminal justice system in her case, “Race and Mass Incarceration in the United States.” Open for comment; 0 Comments.

What Can the World’s Largest Refugee Camp Teach Us About the Meaning of Work?

Almost 1 million Rohingya refugees are sinking deeper into despair while sitting idle in a camp they can’t easily leave. But the opportunity to work might provide a resource more scarce than cash: hope. Research by Reshmaan N. Hussam.

Throwing the Baby Out with the Drinking Water: Unintended Consequences of Arsenic Mitigation Efforts in Bangladesh

In this study, households that were encouraged to switch water sources to avoid arsenic exposure experienced a significant rise in infant and child mortality, likely due to diarrheal disease from exposure to unsafe alternatives. Public health interventions should carefully consider access to alternatives when engaging in mass behavior change efforts.

How to Get People Addicted to a Good Habit

Reshmaan Hussam and colleagues used experimental interventions to determine if people could be persuaded to develop a healthy habit. Potentially at stake: the lives of more than a million children. Open for comment; 0 Comments.

Habit Formation and Rational Addiction: A Field Experiment in Handwashing

This study in rural West Bengal considers the role of habituation in an essential but unpopular preventive health behavior: handwashing with soap. The study finds that frontloading both financial and social incentives facilitates habituation, and agents internalize this habitual nature. Findings help guide the design of optimal incentives to increase the adoption of positive habits.

Marry Rich, Poor Girl: Investigating the Effects of Sex Selection on Intrahousehold Outcomes in India

This study examines the unintended consequences in India of sex selection technology on the marriage market and the bargaining power of surviving women. It finds women in regions exposed to ultrasound face poorer matches and outcomes in marriage.