February 2020 Newsletter
Informing the future of US health care delivery: Results from the Camden Core partnership
In a two-part blog series, researchers, staff, and members of the Camden Coalition reflect on results from an evaluation of the Camden Core Model and what makes for a strong research partnership. J-PAL affiliated researchers Joseph Doyle (MIT; Co-Chair, J-PAL Health sector) and Amy Finkelstein (MIT; Scientific Director, J-PAL North America), and co-authors Sarah Taubman and Annetta Zhou found that providing intensive, time-limited clinical and social assistance did not lower rates of hospital readmission. Read the first blog post »
J-PAL Southeast Asia launches Inclusive Financial Innovation Initiative
valued around $40 billion, Indonesia’s digital economy quadrupled between 2015 and 2019. With support from the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, J-PAL Southeast Asia's new initiative explores how best to harness the growing power of digital technologies to accelerate financial inclusion in Indonesia. Pushing forward the frontier on digital technologies, like mobile money, the Inclusive Financial Innovation Initiative will answer key policy questions on what types of digital financial services work, why, and how best to deploy them. Read more »
New practical guides on publishing and de-identifying data
As more researchers and organizations move towards institutionalizing data publication, it is important to protect the confidentiality of study participants through data de-identification. Drawing from J-PAL’s decade-long expertise in publishing and de-identifying data, our guides walk you through the process. Read more »
FEATURED POLICY INSIGHT
Supporting firm growth through consulting and business training
Can offering business training services and consulting improve management practices and lead to growth? A review of five randomized evaluations found that these programs increased firms’ productivity, sales, profits, and likelihood of survival. Despite these gains, firms did not always take up these programs. Read more »
FEATURED MULTIMEDIA
Catalyzing the scale-up of evaluated programs
In a new video, Shobhini Mukerji (Executive Director, J-PAL South Asia) highlights how J-PAL collaborates with partners to develop a culture of evidence use and to scale programs that are informed by global evidence and grounded in local contexts. Watch now »
UPCOMING EVENT
February 13: Achieving food security and pathways for improved nutrition in India
J-PAL South Asia, the Center for Learning on Evaluation and Results (CLEAR), and the Evaluation Community of India are hosting a panel discussion to share evidence on the role of agricultural productivity in achieving food security and addressing barriers to improved nutrition. Learn more and register »
UPCOMING TRAININGS
Enroll today for the spring semester of the MicroMasters
In January we welcomed 22 students to MIT’s campus in the first cohort of the Data, Economics, and Development Policy (DEDP) Master’s program. The students in the inaugural cohort come from 14 countries and a diverse range of backgrounds.
It’s not too late to start your own journey to a master’s degree from MIT—join the current semester of our online MicroMasters in DEDP. Through a series of five online courses and in-person exams, learners will gain a strong foundation in microeconomics, development economics, and probability and statistics, while engaging with cutting-edge field research. Students who complete the full DEDP credential are eligible to apply for the master's program in DEDP at MIT. Learn more and register »
Upcoming course: Evaluating Social Programs in Cambridge, MA
How do you know if your organization is achieving its intended impact? Join us for a five-day, in-person training June 8–12 at MIT to learn how randomized evaluations can be used to rigorously measure social impact, how they are designed in real-world settings, and how results can drive evidence-based decision-making.
Taught by J-PAL affiliated professors and senior staff, the training is tailored to the needs of policymakers, practitioners, and researchers from NGOs, governments, and foundations from the US and around the world. Learn more and apply by April 17 »
MEDIA HIGHLIGHTS
MIT launches master’s in Data, Economics, and Development Policy, led by Nobel laureates
MIT News
Can we have prosperity without growth?
The New Yorker
Healthcare is gender blind. Here’s how to fix it [Opinion]
The Wire
A Nobel-winning way to make effective policy [Opinion]
Governing
NEW RESEARCH PAPERS
Cashing In (and Out): Experimental Evidence on the Effects of Mobile Money in Malawi
Shilpa Aggarwal, Valentina Brailovskaya, Jonathan Robinson
Just a Bit of Cushion: The Role of a Simple Savings Device in Meeting Planned and Unplanned Expenses in Rural Niger
Jenny C. Aker, Melita Sawyer, Markus Goldstein, Michael O’Sullivan, Magaret McConnell
The Impact of Public-Private Partnerships on Private School Performance: Evidence from a Randomized Controlled Trial in Uganda
Felipe Barrera-Osorio, Pierre De Galbert, James Habyarimana, Shwetlena Sabarwal
Does Household Electrification Supercharge Economic Development?
Kenneth Lee, Edward Miguel, Catherine Wolfram