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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.

Getting Out the Vote in Local Elections in the United States

David W. Nickerson
Researchers examined the impact of door-to-door canvassing on voter turnout in the 2001 local elections in six US cities. The results indicate that voters who were contacted by canvassers were significantly more likely to vote in a wide variety of settings.

Using Behavioral Economics to Help Individuals Reduce Debt in the United States

Researchers designed and piloted a program called Borrow Less Tomorrow (BoLT) that took a behavioral approach to debt reduction, combining an accelerated loan repayment schedule with peer support and reminders. Results from a sample of free tax-preparation clients in Tulsa, United States suggest a...

The Impact of Physician Training on Health Costs and Outcomes in the United States

Joseph Doyle
Steven Ewer
Todd Wagner
Researchers studied the impact of physician training on the cost and quality of care in a large hospital that randomly allocated patients to teams of physicians from residency programs affiliated with one of two different medical schools. Costs for patients treated by physicians affiliated with the...

Improving Consumer Choices on Health Insurance Marketplaces in the United States

Researchers studied the impact of providing personalized and generic information about potential savings via letters and e-mails on enrollee health plan choices.

Clinical Decision Support for Radiology Imaging in the United States

Sarah Abraham
Joseph Doyle
Sarah Reimer
Researchers studied the impact of a clinical decision support software system on high-cost imaging orders. They found that clinical decision support reduced the number of high-cost scans targeted by the software but did not change the total number of high-cost scans ordered.

Providing Financial Incentives and Behavioral Nudges to Encourage Covid-19 Vaccine Uptake in the United States

Tom Chang
Rajiv Pramanik
Samir Shah
Researchers evaluated the impact of financial incentives, public health video messages, and access to a vaccine scheduling link on Covid-19 vaccination intentions and vaccine take-up in the United States. None of the interventions led to increases in vaccine take-up after thirty days. In a...

Effect of Matching Ratios on Charitable Giving in the United States

Researchers found that matching gifts were an effective fundraising tactic, increasing the likelihood of donation and total donations, but larger match ratios did not return more donations than smaller match ratios.