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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.

The Impact of Targeted Mailers to Re-Engage US Voters with Criminal Convictions

Jennifer Doleac
Laurel Eckhouse
Eric Foster-Moore
Allison Harris
Hannah Walker
Ariel White
Researchers evaluated the impact of targeted mailings encouraging people with criminal records to register to vote on voting behavior in North Carolina. Mailers increased both voter registration and general election turnout among people with past criminal convictions.

Emergency Savings Accounts for Remittance Receivers in Mexico

Researchers partnered with CNS to investigate whether requiring clients to sign a non-binding agreement to save a predetermined amount of each remittance received could increase saving.

Effectively Targeting Anti-Poverty Programs in Indonesia

Researchers in Indonesia compared the effectiveness of two methods of identifying the low-income households: a community method where villagers ranked households according to perceived wealth, and a proxy-means test which relied on measures of consumption and assets. The community methods of...

Providing a Collaborative Civic Education Program to Students in France, Greece, and Spain

Sandra McNally
Jenifer Ruiz-Valenzuela
Daniel Santín
Researchers evaluated the impact of a civic education program involving learning-by-doing and student-centered teaching approaches in middle schools across three European countries. The program increased students’ academic performance, respect for school rules, and friendship networks with people...

Text Message Reminders and Incentives to Save in Bolivia

Researchers evaluated the effectiveness of sending text message reminders to clients holding programmed savings accounts.

Moving to Opportunity or Isolation? Network Effects of a Slum Relocation Program in India

Sharon Barnhardt
Researchers examined results of a housing lottery to measure the impact of relocation on slum residents. They found that offering subsidized suburban housing resulted in neither comprehensive take-up nor higher family income, suggesting that the benefits of improved housing were offset by the costs...

Promoting Sustainable Farming Practices in Malawi

Ariel BenYishay
Researchers conducted a randomized evaluation to test the impact of leveraging social networks to disseminate information about two technologies, pit planting and “Chinese composting,” on farmers’ adoption of these methods. Providing performance-based incentives to peer farmers had the biggest...