American Economic Journal:
Economic Policy
ISSN 1945-7731 (Print) | ISSN 1945-774X (Online)
Policymaking, Trust, and the Demand for Public Services: Evidence from a Mass Sterilization Campaign
American Economic Journal: Economic Policy
vol. 17,
no. 1, February 2025
(pp. 181–215)
Abstract
We study a large-scale family planning intervention in which more than 260,000 Peruvian women were sterilized. Many of these medical procedures are alleged to have been performed without patient consent. The subsequent disclosure of alleged illegal sterilizations caused reductions in the usage of contraceptive methods and prenatal and birth delivery services and, more generally, the demand for medical services in affected areas. As a result, child health worsened. The results persist for at least 17 years after the information disclosure and are driven by disappointed supporters of the implementing government. Learning about the government's malpractices undermined trust in institutions.Citation
León-Ciliotta, Gianmarco ⓡ Dijana Zejcirovic ⓡ Fernando Fernandez. 2025. "Policymaking, Trust, and the Demand for Public Services: Evidence from a Mass Sterilization Campaign." American Economic Journal: Economic Policy 17 (1): 181–215. DOI: 10.1257/pol.20230155Additional Materials
JEL Classification
- I12 Health Behavior
- I18 Health: Government Policy; Regulation; Public Health
- I38 Welfare, Well-Being, and Poverty: Government Programs; Provision and Effects of Welfare Programs
- J13 Fertility; Family Planning; Child Care; Children; Youth
- J16 Economics of Gender; Non-labor Discrimination
- J18 Demographic Economics: Public Policy
- O15 Economic Development: Human Resources; Human Development; Income Distribution; Migration