Darlings and Orphans: Interactions across Donors in International Aid
研究了单个捐赠者的双边援助如何受其他双边和多边捐赠者援助的影响，发现其他捐赠者的援助会显著增加特定捐赠者的援助，尤其是对大型捐赠者和“宠儿”受援国，表明从众行为是援助关系的主要特征。
Abstract We examine how the bilateral aid flows from an individual donor to a recipient depend on the aid flows from all other bilateral and multilateral donors to that recipient. Thereby, we assess to what extent issues including donor coordination, free‐riding, selectivity, specialization, and common donor interests drive bilateral aid allocations. We find that others’ bilateral flows lead to a significant increase in aid flows from a particular donor, but primarily within a given year. The effects are particularly pronounced for large donors and so‐called “darling” recipients. Overall, the results suggest that herding is a dominant feature of aid inter‐relationships.