Does Job Search Assistance Reduce Unemployment? Evidence on Displacement Effects and Mechanisms
通过两阶段随机实验，发现求职援助虽能降低受助者失业，但会产生替代效应，且替代效应在弱劳动力市场更大。
Using a two-level randomized experiment, we find that job search assistance (JSA) reduces unemployment among the treated but also creates displacement effects. Analyses of mechanisms show that vacancy referrals from caseworkers to job seekers explain the positive effects for the treated by helping the job seekers apply to the most relevant jobs earlier. We also find that the overall assessment of JSA hinges on how the displacement effects hit the labor market and to what extent firms react by opening new vacancies. The displacement is larger in weak labor markets, and we find no displacement of resources.