Blog

News

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.

The Impact of Free Tuition Program Design on College Applications and Enrollment in the United States

Elizabeth Burland
Katherine Michelmore
Stephanie Owen
Shwetha Raghuraman
Researchers investigated how two different free tuition programs for low-income students affected application and enrollment to the University of Michigan. An unconditional offer substantially increased application and enrollment while a conditional offer had a much smaller effect on applications...

The Effect of Information on Employee Evaluation in the United States

Researchers evaluated the effect of distributing “value-added” teacher evaluations to principals in New York City. Their findings suggest that principals found the reports useful and used them to inform their overall perceptions of teacher effectiveness.

The Effects of Crowdsourced Information Sharing on Farmers and Agricultural Markets in Pakistan

Buyers often have limited information on service quality in low- and middle-income countries. In the absence of information, buyers may receive low quality services or may choose not to seek out service at all, limiting potential benefits for households. Researchers evaluated a program in Pakistan...

The Impact of a Comprehensive Re-entry Program on Employment and Recidivism in the United States

Anthony Braga
Philip J. Cook
Songman Kang
Mallory O'Brien
Researchers examined whether a program that provides people who are incarcerated with services both prior to and after their release could improve employment prospects and reduce recidivism. One year later, the program increased employment and reduced the likelihood of re-arrest. However, earnings...

Dependence Duration and Labor Market Conditions: Evidence from the United States

Researchers conducted a randomized evaluation to assess the role of employer behavior in generating "negative duration dependence"—the adverse effect of longer unemployment spells—by sending fictitious resumes to real job postings in 100 U.S. cities. Callback rates declined sharply over the first...

Evaluating the Impact of Play-Based Learning on Early Childhood Development in South Africa

In KwaZulu-Natal, researchers are measuring the impact of the Six Bricks program, which promotes structured play using manipulative bricks combined with a set of carefully designed pedagogical activities, on preschoolers' executive function skills.

Citizen Demand for Corruption: Evidence from Roadway Tolls in the D.R. Congo

Otis Reid
Researchers conducted a randomized evaluation of incentives for motorcycle taxi drivers to pay the legal road tolls in the Democratic Republic of the Congo. Results suggest that financial incentives reduced bribery by seven to ten percentage points.