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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.

Closing the Early Learning Gap for Roma Children in Bulgaria

Elise Huillery
Kindergarten education is vital for a child’s success in primary school and later in life. However, kindergarten enrollment rates of children from ethnic minorities remain low. Researchers measured the impact of providing incentives and information about the importance of early education on the...

The Welfare Effects of Behavioral Energy Conservation in the United States

In the United States, researchers evaluated the social welfare impacts of one very popular nudge to decrease energy consumption—Home Energy Reports (HERs). While they found that the HERs increased social welfare overall, these gains were far less than those reported by previous evaluations that did...

The Effect of Vocational Training on Gender Norms in Northern Nigeria

Researchers conducted a randomized evaluation to test whether a gender-neutral job training could shift norms in a religiously conservative region of Nigeria. Youth who were offered job training earned more, broadened their friend groups, and adopted more progressive views on women’s education...

Effects of Student Performance Information on Parental Decision-Making in Malawi

This study evaluated the impacts of information about children’s academic performance on parents’ subsequent investments in their children’s education. Findings indicate that parents’ perceptions of their children’s academic needs tend to be inaccurate, and that providing parents with information on...

Building Resilient Health Systems: Community Monitoring and Nonfinancial Awards During the Sierra Leone 2014 Ebola Outbreak

Researchers partnered with the Government of Sierra Leone to evaluate the impact of community monitoring and nonfinancial awards programs on health care utilization and health outcomes. Both programs improved clinic utilization, patient satisfaction, and symptom reporting during the 2014 Ebola...

The Impact of an Online Math Learning Platform on Test Scores and Attitudes Towards Math in Brazil

Lucas Finamor
Lycia Lima
Researchers conducted a randomized evaluation to measure the impacts of the Khan Academy’s online platform on math scores in Brazilian public schools. Despite improving student’s attitudes towards math, the program had mixed impact on students’ test scores depending on program implementation and...