School Vouchers as Commitment: Experimental Evidence on School Fees in Uganda
Coming soon!
Michelle Layvant
PhD Candidate in Agricultural and Resource Economics
University of California, Berkeley
I am a development economist studying human capital investment and household financial decisions. My research examines how households finance investments in education and health, and the short- and long-run consequences of those investments.
I am on the 2026–2027 job market.
Email: mlayvant[at]berkeley.edu
Research
Job Market Paper
Publications and Accepted Papers
Intergenerational Child Mortality Impacts of Deworming: Experimental Evidence from Two Decades of the Kenya Life Panel Survey
American Economic Journal: Applied Economics, conditionally accepted, 2026.
Abstract
We assess impacts of a randomized deworming intervention in Kenya on the mortality of recipients' children using 23-year longitudinal data on over 5,500 original participants and their offspring. The under-5 mortality rate fell by 22% (17 deaths per 1000 live births) for children of treatment group individuals, with larger effects when considering the in-utero period due to reduced miscarriage. A combination of improved health, education, living standards and use of health care, increased urban residence, and delayed fertility in the parent generation contributed to the reduction. The results provide evidence for meaningful intergenerational benefits of child health investments.
Impacts of Contemporaneous Air Pollution Exposure on Cognitive Performance in Kenya
Journal of Health Economics 109, 103166, 2026.
Abstract
We estimate the short-term cognitive effects of fine particulate matter (PM2.5) exposure using novel exposure data collected during cognitive testing in Kenya. Unlike most existing studies that rely on satellite-based or fixed monitoring station data, we measure highly localized ambient pollution using portable monitors deployed at cognitive testing sites and link these readings directly to Harmonized Cognitive Assessment Protocol (HCAP) scores. Higher PM2.5 exposure during testing is associated with lower cognitive performance, particularly in executive function, memory, and visuospatial tasks. Binned exposure models suggest a monotonic pattern, with more negative estimates at higher exposure levels. Notably, effects are significantly larger among more educated individuals, possibly due to greater task demands or lower chronic exposure that limits physiological adaptation. Given that cognitive impairment is evident even at PM2.5 levels below Kenya’s mean annual regulatory threshold of 35 μg/m3, the findings suggest that short-term exposure may impose underappreciated human capital costs that current regulatory standards fail to mitigate. The results highlight the potential cognitive and economic returns to interventions that reduce air pollution exposures in low-resource settings.
Midlife Cognitive Testing in Africa: Validity of the Harmonised Cognitive Assessment Protocol in the Kenya Life Panel Survey
BMJ Open 15(8), 2025.
Abstract
Objectives: Cohort studies of ageing and cognitive decline typically do not begin fielding comprehensive cognitive assessments until older adulthood. However, for identifying preventable dementia risk factors, there is strong value in beginning at earlier ages. The case is especially compelling in sub-Saharan Africa, where the number of older individuals is expected to triple in the next three decades, and where risk factors may operate more intensively at earlier ages. This study reports on the adaptation and validity of the Harmonised Cognitive Assessment Protocol (HCAP) approach in the Kenya Life Panel Survey (KLPS), collected among middle-aged respondents.
Design: To evaluate the validity of the HCAP approach in Kenya, this study assesses model fit statistics from confirmatory factor analyses (CFA) and tests measurement invariance by respondent characteristics.
Setting: Both rural and urban areas in Kenya.
Participants: A sample of n=5878 individuals from the KLPS, who have been surveyed regularly since they were schoolchildren in the 1990s. The HCAP assessment was administered in 2023 at an average age of 37 years (10–90 range 34 to 41).
Primary and secondary outcome measures: For each individual, the CFA generates a general cognitive performance score, and cognitive performance scores for five distinct domains, including memory, executive functioning, language, orientation to time and place, and visuospatial functioning.
Results: Fit of the models to the data was adequate for general cognitive performance (root mean squared error of approximation (RMSEA)=0.03; comparative fit index (CFI)=0.94; standardised root mean residual (SRMR)=0.05), language (RMSEA=0.02; CFI=0.95; SRMR=0.05) and good for memory (RMSEA=0.05; CFI=0.99; SRMR=0.02) and executive functioning (RMSEA=0.03; CFI=0.98; SRMR=0.03). The CFA indicate that the factor structure is consistent with findings from other countries and that reliability for the general cognitive performance score was high. Statistical models also suggest invariance at the scalar level for leading demographic (gender, age) and socioeconomic (education, occupational complexity) characteristics.
Conclusions: This study demonstrates that the cognitive functioning of mid-age Kenyans appears to be well captured by the adapted protocol. While there is a moderate decline in cognitive performance among older individuals, this relationship appears to be mediated by education, indicating that this KLPS HCAP provides a valuable baseline for studying future cognitive decline.
Teaching
Business and Production of Beer, Wine, and Spirits
University of California, Berkeley
2021, 2022, 2023, 2025, 2026
Population, Environment, and Development
University of California, Berkeley
2024
Case Studies in Economic Development
University of California, Berkeley
2023