Measuring Agency Through Psychological Constructs in Lower-Income Settings

Psychological constructs related to agency—such as the ability to set goals or feel in control—are increasingly recognized as determinants of economic outcomes and well-being.

Psychological constructs related to agency—such as the ability to set goals or feel in control—are increasingly recognized as determinants of economic outcomes and well-being. Yet validated measures are scarce outside Western, educated, industrial, rich, and democratic (WEIRD) contexts. This paper introduces four scales measuring goal-setting capacity, locus of control, generalized livelihoods self-efficacy, and agricultural self-efficacy, tested through representative and specialized surveys in Benin, Côte d'Ivoire, Kenya, Malawi, Tanzania, and Uganda. All the scales demonstrate strong psychometric properties, although locus of control shows weaker internal reliability. Five-point Likert scales outperform three-point alternatives. Using these tools, the paper documents significant associations between all four agency constructs and subjective well-being, labor supply, earnings, food security, and intra-household decision-making. Generalized livelihoods self-efficacy shows the strongest and most consistent associations across outcomes. For women, agency's links to labor supply and intra-household decision-making are stronger and hold across more contexts than they do for men. Across constructs, the relationship with expected life satisfaction tends to be larger than with current life satisfaction, suggesting that agency may be particularly relevant for predicting aspirations. These scales are recommended for descriptive surveys and impact evaluations related to well-being, economic livelihoods, and empowerment.