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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.

Encouraging Savings through SMS Messages in the Dominican Republic

There is a growing body of evidence on the efficacy of SMS reminders to encourage banking clients to save more. Researchers in the Dominican Republic partnered with savings and credit institution Banco Unión to conduct two randomized evaluations of tailored SMS reminders.

The Effects of STEM Summer Programs on College Major, Persistence, and Graduation for Underrepresented High School Students in the United States

Helen Ho
Researchers evaluated three STEM-focused summer programs for high school students and found that the programs increased students’ likelihood of attending a highly-ranked university, graduating, and earning a degree in STEM.

Gender Violence and School Achievement in Mozambique

Sofia Amaral
Aixa Garcia-Ramos
Sarita Ore-Quispe
In Mozambique, researchers are evaluating the GBV and schooling impacts of implementing a GBV curriculum targeted at students.

Improving Economic Outcomes and Well-being through Unconditional Cash Transfers and Goal-Setting in Kenya

Research has shown that people living in poverty are more likely to experience a range of psychological barriers that might constrain economic success. These barriers may include lower aspirations and goals, a perception that their actions have limited impacts on their circumstances, time...

The Impact of Providing Land Tax Subsidies, Local Monitoring, and Minikits on Irrigation Use in Rwanda

Maria Jones
Florence Kondylis
John Loeser
Building off of previous quasi-experimental research, researchers conducted three randomized evaluations to test the impact of providing farmers with land tax subsidies, different ways of monitoring water access and the canal’s operations and maintenance, or farming minikits on farmers' use of...

Unconditional Cash Transfers and Civic Engagement in Kenya

Citizen participation in local civic affairs and in decision-making processes around village resources can be a way to align policies with local preferences, hold politicians accountable, and improve public service delivery. In rural Western Kenya, researchers are partnering with GiveDirectly to...

The Impact of Outreach and Assistance from Navigators on Medicaid Renewals in the United States

Allison Espeseth
Researchers assessed the impact of outreach on Medicaid retention; outreach messages provided a reminder to renew as well as information about how to obtain free one-on-one assistance with renewal processes from health insurance navigators. Outreach using pre-recorded calls prevented denials due to...

Subsidized Housing to Change the Economic Outcomes and Social Integration of Syrian Refugees in Jordan

Samuel Leone
Researchers are conducting a randomized evaluation of a subsidized housing assistance program for refugees in Jordan to assess its impact on their economic outcomes, psychological well-being, long-term migration decisions, and social integration into their host community.