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Alexandr Lenk

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Graduate Student Research Funding | 2019 - 2020 Academic Year

Improving Neighborhood Safety in Developing Cities via Non-Monetary Public Prestige Channels: Experimental Evidence from Dar-es-Salaam, Tanzania

Developing nations have witnessed increasing rates of urbanization in the last decade, which has been accompanied by rising concerns about the residents’ safety and security as police capacity might become overwhelmed. Lenk studies the institution of sungu-sungu, community patrols organized by residents in Dar-es-Salaam, Tanzania, that ensure local safety by conducting regular night watches of their respective neighborhoods. He plans to run a field experiment that could establish the optimal nonmonetary reward-scheme for the sungu-sungu such that they feel more valued and appreciated by their community, thus leading to better patrolling performance both on the extensive and intensive margins.


Alexandr Lenk, Department of Economics

Alexandr Lenk

Alexandr Lenk is a PhD student in economics at Stanford University. His research combines techniques from behavioral economics, machine learning and the econometrics of causal inference to answer policy-relevant questions in a myriad of domains including early childhood education, road safety and community policing in developing nations, emotional stigma, or the trade-off between intervention and autonomy. Prior to his studies at Stanford, Lenk worked as a research professional for Professor John List at the University of Chicago where he developed his interests in the analysis and design of field experiments. He holds a master's degree in economics and social sciences, cum laude, from Bocconi University.

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