de Mel, SureshMcKenzie, DavidWoodruff, Christopher2012-03-302012-03-302009American Economic Journal: Applied Economics19457782https://hdl.handle.net/10986/5592We report on a field experiment providing random grants to microenterprise owners. The grants generated large profit increases for male owners but not for female owners. We show that the gender gap does not simply mask differences in ability, risk aversion, entrepreneurial attitudes, or differences in reporting behavior, but there is some evidence that the gender gap is larger in female-dominated industries. The data are not consistent with a unitary household model, and imply an inefficiency of resource allocation within households. We show evidence that this inefficiency is reduced in more cooperative households.ENCC BY-NC-ND 3.0 IGOHousehold Production and Intrahousehold Allocation D130Personal Finance D140Economics of GenderNon-labor Discrimination J160Firm Performance: Size, Diversification, and Scope L250Entrepreneurship L260Microeconomic Analyses of Economic Development O120Economic Development: Financial MarketsSaving and Capital InvestmentCorporate Finance and Governance O160Microdata SetJournal ArticleWorld Bank