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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.

Balancing Health Benefits and Risks of ACT Subsidies in Kenya

Researchers distributed vouchers for antimalarial drugs and malaria rapid diagnostic tests, redeemable at four local drug shops in Western Kenya. Taking some subsidy money away from antimalarial drugs and putting it towards subsidizing and promoting rapid diagnostic testing could improve targeting.

Increasing Mobile Banking Use Among Rural Populations in Ghana

Researchers assessed the impact of financial incentives and peer endorsement on mobile banking adoption and formal savings in Ghana. While financial incentives boosted adoption by 50 percent, peer endorsement was twice as effective, leading to sustained mobile banking use and a 30 percent increase...

Community Based Strategies to Reduce Maternal Mortality in Northern Nigeria

Jessica Leight
Vandana Sharma
In northern Nigeria, researchers evaluated the impact of three community-based interventions designed to enhance uptake of maternal and child health services: a community health worker program, health educators with the provision of safe birth kits, and health educators with community dramas. While...

Increasing Savings and Reducing Credit Card Reliance among Low-Income U.S. Households

Researchers conducted a randomized evaluation to investigate the demand for commitment savings products or financial counseling, and the impacts these products and services have on savings, among a sample of low- and moderate-income credit union members in New York City.

Impacts of Conditional Cash Transfer Programs on Voting in Honduras

In this randomized evaluation in Honduras, researchers assessed how the national Programa de Asignación Familiar (Family Allowance Program) CCT program, which provided a combination of transfers to households and transfers to support public goods, influenced voting in local and national elections...

Mobile Phone-Based Extension Services and Agricultural Advice for Cotton Farmers in India

Researchers introduced a mobile phone-based agricultural extension service to evaluate its impact on knowledge and adoption of effective farming methods among cotton farmers in Gujarat, India. They found that the service was highly effective in nudging farmers to adopt a number of recommended...

Changing Pedagogy to Improve Math Skills in Preschools in Peru

Mariana Alfonso
Emma Naslund-Hadley
In Peru, researchers evaluated the impact of a tailored inquiry- and problem-based learning approach on preschoolers’ performance in math. The program improved overall mathematics outcomes, which persisted for some content areas even one year after the program ended.

Social Pressure and Voter Turnout in the United States

Christopher Larimer
To study the effect of increased social pressure on turnout, researchers sent households one of four randomly selected mailings eleven days before Michigan’s August 2006 primary election. All four mailings increased turnout, but informing households of their neighbors’ past voting records raised...