Researchers examined the impact of different types of motivation on the number and quality of candidates running for village councils in Pakistan, electoral outcomes, and elected candidates’ policy alignment with citizens’ interests. They found that portraying politics as socially beneficial–rather than personally rewarding–increased candidate entry, their electoral success, and elected officials’ policy alignment with citizen preferences.

Researchers conducted a randomized evaluation to test the impact of an all-expense-paid three-day leadership training workshop on incentivizing honest and competent youth to run for a village youth council.

Researchers evaluated the impacts of increased exposure to financial markets on participants’ financial literacy and investment behavior in Israel, and found it reduced the gender gap in financial literacy and confidence. They found that engaging in financial markets increased participants' understanding of basic financial concepts, and reduced the gender gap in financial literacy, self-assessed financial knowledge, and subsequent stock investment.

Researchers partnered with the two major political parties in Sierra Leone and conducted a randomized evaluation to test the impact of providing reliable information on potential candidates’ qualifications and sharing voter preferences with party officials during Parliamentary elections. More democratic selection procedures increased the likelihood that parties chose the candidate most preferred by voters by 23.9 percentage points, and favored candidates who had a stronger record of providing public goods.

The researcher evaluated the impact of providing eligible women with program information and various levels of application assistance for the Delhi Widow Pension Scheme on program knowledge, application completion, and enrollment. Offering more involved application assistance increased average application rates, particularly among more vulnerable women.

Researchers used data on lottery winners in Sweden to determine whether receiving an influx of cash affected the labor supply decisions of winners and their spouses. They found that lottery winners reduced their labor supply, suggesting that cash transfers can have an effect on labor market outcomes.

Researchers partnered with Aid to Artisans (ATA), a US-based nonprofit, and Hamis Carpets, an Egypt-based distributor, to provide small-scale rug manufacturers the opportunity to export to high-income countries. Offering small firms the opportunity to export rugs to high-income markets increased firm profits through improvements in firm’s technical knowledge, efficiency, and product quality.