Firm Culture: Can Information Interventions Reduce Gender Gaps in Online Labor Markets?

The authors' previous work has documented significant gender gaps in application and hiring patterns using evidence from online labor markets in Africa. Women tend to be more qualified, by education, for the jobs they apply to than men, but less qualified, by years of experience. Women apply to lower number of jobs and lower level jobs than men, even when they are more
educated on average for the position. Women are also less likely to be hired for a position than similarly qualified and educated male counterparts. Why do we observe these gender gaps in application and hiring? And can low cost information interventions help reduce gender gaps in applications and hiring in online labor markets? In this research project, we apply a randomized evaluation to examine the effects of information interventions on the observed gender gaps in application and hiring in online labor markets.