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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 Role of Information and Preferences in School Choices in Romania

Robert Ainsworth
Rajeev Dehejia
In this randomized evaluation in Romania, researchers compared the roles of preferences and information in households’ decision-making, with regard to high school selection. Results suggest that households provided with information on school quality tend to choose schools that have a greater...

Gender, Marital Status, and Labor Market Discrimination in Egypt

Caroline Krafft
Researchers conducted a randomized evaluation to assess employer discrimination by randomizing applicants' self-described gender and marital status on resumes submitted to prospective employers.

The Impact of Long-Range Weather Forecasts for Farmers’ in India

In India, researchers conducted a randomized evaluation to test the impacts of providing long-range, seasonal weather forecasts on farmers’ investments on and off the farm, and their well-being. They found that farmers who had access to the forecast updated their beliefs about the upcoming...

HIV/AIDS Prevention Through Relative Risk Information for Teenage Girls in Kenya

To test the impact of information on teenagers’ sexual decisions, a “Relative Risk Information Campaign” was conducted in 71 schools to give students information about the distribution of HIV infection rates by age and gender groups and discuss the role of cross-generational sex in the spread of HIV...

The Impact of Offering Pay-as-you-go Car Insurance on Covering Drivers in California

Researchers conducted a randomized evaluation to test the impact of introducing a pay-as-you-go car insurance contract, which reduces minimum purchase requirements, to uninsured drivers in California. Applicants who were offered this type of insurance were nearly twice as likely to purchase car...

Providing Health Insurance through Microfinance Networks in Rural Karnataka, India

Richard Hornbeck
Researchers partnered with SKS Microfinance to measure the impact of bundling a health insurance product with microloan renewals on health insurance take-up, and health care use and spending. They found that the requirement to purchase health insurance substantially reduced microcredit clients’ loan...

Expanding Educational Opportunities through a Public-Private Partnership in Pakistan

David Blakeslee
Matthew Hoover
Dhushyanth Raju
Stephen Ryan
Researchers conducted a randomized evaluation to measure the impact of publicly-funded private primary schools on student enrollment in rural Pakistan. The private school program significantly increased school enrollment, but did not reduce gender disparities among students.