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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.

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 Transfers’ Effects on Food Consumption in Mexico

Carlos Chiapa
Silvia Prina
Irvin Rojas
Researchers conducted a randomized evaluation to test the impact of the anti-poverty cash transfer program, PROSPERA, on food consumption for families living in poverty in Mexico. Households consumed enough food both before and after receiving the cash transfer.

Prescribing Food as Medicine among Individuals Experiencing Diabetes and Food Insecurity in the United States

John Bulger
John Cawley
Andrea Feinberg
Diabetes is one of the most prevalent diseases in the United States and is closely linked to food insecurity. Researchers evaluated the impact of an intensive food-as-medicine program that provides fresh food and diabetes education on health and health care utilization for individuals experiencing...

Street Police Patrolling Effects To Reduce Crime Against Women in Public Spaces in India

Sofia Amaral
Girija Borker
Anjani Kumar
In partnership with the Hyderabad City Police (HCP), researchers conducted a randomized evaluation to test the impact of a police patrolling program aimed at improving women’s safety on the frequency of sexual harassment and women’s freedom to move around in public spaces. The presence of uniformed...

Impact of school-based training on social cohesion for immigrant children in Finland

Matti Sarvimaki
Mikko Silliman
Marco Tabellini
Researchers partnered with a local non-profit, Walter, to evaluate the effectiveness of two school-based social cohesion interventions for immigrants’ children in Finnish schools.

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...

Digital Monitoring and Health Service Provision in Sierra Leone

In many countries, rural populations access social services through decentralized systems that hire community-based workers with high monitoring needs, leaving little time for supervisors to perform other essential functions. Researchers are evaluating the impact of a phone-based e-monitoring app...