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Browse news articles about J-PAL and our affiliated professors, and read our press releases and monthly global and research newsletters. For media inquiries, please email us.

Structured Study Time, Self-Efficacy, and Tutoring

In this study, researchers evaluated scalable methods to improve student retention and performance in an online course, with the goal of improving meaningful access to this resource.

Accountability and Transparency in the Mining Sector of Peru

Researchers evaluated an accountability workshop program, which educated citizens on the distribution of extractive industry tax revenues and the formal means of local political participation. The program had mixed results on local government quality, increasing the likelihood of initiating recall...

The Impact of Psychosocial Therapy and Vocational Skills Training on Intimate Partner Violence in Urban Liberia

Naresh Kumar
David Park
In partnership with the Liberia National Red Cross Society, researchers evaluated a holistic approach to reducing IPV, in which vulnerable women received intensive psychosocial support and vocational skills training. The program reduced physical and emotional IPV; it also increased participants’...

The role of information, accountability and resource gaps in explaining poor urban services quality in Addis Ababa and its rapidly urbanizing surroundings

Girum Abebe
Daniel Agness
Tigabu Degu Getahun
In partnership with the Ethiopian Development Research Institute (EDRI), researchers are providing report cards that document citizen satisfaction with a range of public services to various levels of government officials to measure the impact of information and accountability on public service...

The Effect of Text Message Reminders on Failure to Appear in Court in the Rural United States

Researchers conducted a randomized evaluation to test the impact of text message reminders on rates of failure to appear in court (FTA) among people who are unhoused and housed in rural Shasta County, California. The reminders reduced FTA rates for the housed population, but did not impact FTA rates...

MTV Shuga: Changing social norms and behaviors with entertainment education in Nigeria

Can television shows change how people think and act? In Nigeria, researchers evaluated the impact of MTV Shuga, a drama featuring educational storylines about HIV/AIDS on viewers’ sexual knowledge, attitudes, and behaviors. The study shows that exposure to MTV Shuga improved viewers’ knowledge and...

The Impact of Exposing Corrupt Politicians through Government Audits in Brazil

Billions of dollars in government funds go missing each year due to corruption, but there is limited consensus on how best to tackle this global challenge. Researchers leveraged data from Brazil’s long-standing anticorruption program, which holds public lotteries to randomly select municipalities...