Policy interventions that foster aspirations, such as those using role models, are increasingly being implemented so that students, women, microentrepreneurs, farmers, and poor individuals can achieve untapped opportunities. Several of these interventions have successfully enhanced educational achievements, labor market participation, and business activities. However, raising the aspirations of individuals when they do not have opportunities to realize them can generate frustration and make them worse off. This paper argues that effective policy interventions need to account for both aspirations and opportunities and proposes a framework to consider both elements. The paper highlights how addressing either element in isolation can lead to unfavorable outcomes, such as falling into an aspiration trap (when low aspirations prevent people from seizing available opportunities), experiencing frustration (when aspirations are enhanced without matching opportunities), or remaining in a poverty trap (when both aspirations and opportunities are low). The paper discusses various policy approaches to raising aspirations and opportunities in light of these scenarios and the challenges of aligning the two elements.
Authors
Muller,Noel, Fruttero,Anna, Calvo-Gonzalez,Oscar, De Hoop,Jacobus Joost
- DOI
- https://dx.doi.org/10.1596/1813-9450-10790
- Disclosure Date
- 2024/06/04
- Disclosure Status
- Disclosed
- Doc Name
- Policies for Aspirations. And Opportunities
- Originating Unit
- Off of Sr VP Dev Econ/Chief Econ (DECVP)
- Product Line
- Advisory Services & Analytics
- Published in
- United States of America
- Rel Proj ID
- 6L-Lac Gender Innovation Lab 2 -- P504274
- Sector
- Social Protection
- Series Name
- Policy Research working paper ; no. WPS 10790; PROSPERITY;
- TF No/Name
- TF0C3673-LACGIL Phase 2,TF0C4654-LACGIL 2
- Unit Owning
- EFI-LCR-POV-Poverty and Equity (ELCPV),EFI-ECA-POV-Poverty and Equity (EECPV)
- Version Type
- Final
- Volume No
- 1
Table of Contents
- Abstract 3
- 1. Introduction 4
- 2. A framework for considering aspirations and opportunities jointly 6
- 2.1. Alignment 7
- 2.2. The poverty trap 8
- 2.3. The aspiration trap 8
- 2.4. Frustration 10
- 3. Interventions against poverty traps, aspiration traps, and frustration 12
- 3.1. Exiting the poverty trap 12
- 3.2. Escaping the aspiration trap 17
- 3.3. Avoiding frustrated aspirations 22
- 4. Discussion and conclusion 25
- 5. References 28
- 6. Annex 1. Methodology to identify and select the studies about aspiration interventions 36
- Identification of relevant studies 36
- Selection of relevant studies 37
