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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.

Teaching Students Perspective-taking to Mitigate Social Exclusion of Refugee Children in Turkey

Researchers partnered with the Ministry of Education in Turkey to conduct a randomized evaluation of Understanding Each Other, a program which aims to foster social cohesion through perspective-taking activities that encourage students to consider others’ perspectives. They found that the program...

The Impact of Existing Account Usage on the Likelihood of Switching Accounts in Malawi

Xavier Giné
Researchers partnered with a local bank to learn how customers chose between two account types—an account that had been offered for many years, which carried high monthly fees but no individual transaction costs, or a new type of account that charged for each withdrawal but did not impose monthly...

Applying Behavioral Insights to Improve Tax Enforcement in Poland

Nina Mazar
Roberto Claudio Sormani
In partnership with the Polish Tax Office, researchers conducted a nation-wide randomized evaluation to test the impact of sending tax enforcement letters with behavioral messages on tax compliance among delinquent taxpayers. The results indicate that behavioral letters significantly improved tax...

Cash and Microenterprise Support for the Ultra-Poor in Uganda

In partnership with the Association of Volunteers in International Service, researchers evaluated the impact of the Women’s Income Generating Support (WINGS) program, an initiative which provided low-income Ugandan individuals, mainly women, with financial grants, business skills training, and...

The Impact of Information Campaigns on Voter Polarization in Turkey

The researcher evaluated an opposition party’s door-to-door information campaign regarding increases in executive power or executive performance to determine the impact of widespread, non-state-authorized information on voter partisanship. In neighborhoods with majority opposition supporters...

Pricing Schemes and Irrigation Techniques for Water Conservation and Farm Profits in Bangladesh

Researchers conducted two randomized evaluations in Bangladesh to study the impact of a new irrigation method and different pricing schemes on water use and conservation. The new irrigation method reduced water consumption and costs for farmers who were already paying for water by the hour, or by...

Decreasing Mobile Money Vendor Misconduct through Information Sharing in Ghana

In Ghana, researchers evaluated the impact of providing vendors and consumers with information on official mobile money charges and options for recourse for consumers to report being overcharged. The program led to a decrease in misconduct, which in turn facilitated an increase in market activity...

Principal Training to Improve Student Achievement in Puerto Rico

Researchers are evaluating the impact of changes in school management practices on student outcomes over time by introducing a large-scale principal training program for school directors in Puerto Rico and testing different strategies to sustain improved management practices after the program.