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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 Price Effects of Cash Versus In-Kind Transfers in Mexico

Jesse Cunha
Giacomo De Giorgi
When making transfers to poor families, many governments choose to transfer goods rather than cash, often in order to encourage the consumption of specific goods. In southern Mexico, researchers studied the effects of both cash and in-kind transfers on the demand and supply of food. They found that...

Text Messages as Reminders for Antiretroviral Medication Adherence in Kenya

Researchers introduced text message reminders to evaluate their effect on Kenyan patients taking their antiretrovirals consistently and not skipping doses. Patients who received weekly text messages were more likely to take their medicine 90 percent of the time and were less likely to skip doses for...

Communication Skills Training for Mothers to Improve Child Health in Uganda

In Uganda, researchers conducted a randomized evaluation to test the impact of a communication training program targeting mothers on child health investments. The intervention increased spousal discussion about the family’s health, nutrition, and finances.

Student Incentive Structures in Malawi

Hyuncheol Kim
Hyuk Harry Son
Researchers conducted a randomized evaluation to test the impact of two different performance-based incentives on students’ test scores, motivation, and behavior in Malawi. They find that tournament-style incentives that rewarded the top performers among a large group lowered test scores and student...

Deterring Drunk Driving in India

To investigate which strategies are most effective at preventing drunk driving and reducing traffic accidents, researchers partnered with the Rajasthan Police in India to evaluate an anti-drunk driving program using sobriety testing checkpoints. Overall, the anti-drunk driving program was effective...

The Effect of a Nonpartisan Get-Out-the-Vote Drive in the United States

To evaluate potential methods of increasing voter participation, researchers examined the effect of a simple nonpartisan leaflet (e.g., a printed card) on voter turnout in the 1998 general election in the US city of Hamden, Connecticut. The card had no impact on turnout of voters registered with one...

Financial Trust Workshops to Encourage Savings Behaviors in Peru

Camila Navajas Ahumada
Researchers conducted a randomized evaluation in rural Peru to assess the impact of providing a workshop designed to foster trust in banks on participants’ levels of trust, financial literacy, and saving and account use patterns of cash transfer recipients. Overall, participants who were offered the...