Evaluations
Search our database of 843 randomized evaluations conducted by our affiliates in 80 countries. To browse summaries of key policy recommendations from a subset of these evaluations, visit the Policy Publications tab.
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Political Economy & Governance
Harvesting Rainfall: Experimental Evidence from Cistern Deployment in Northeast Brazil
Marco Gonzalez-Navarro, Paul Gertler , Gustavo Bobonis, Simeon NichterPolitical clientelism is often deemed to undermine democratic accountability and representation. This study argues that economic vulnerability causes citizens to participate in clientelism.
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Finance
The Impact of a Formal Savings Intervention in Sri Lanka
Craig McIntosh, Michael Callen , Suresh de Mel, Christopher WoodruffResearchers conducted a randomized evaluation to test the impact of a deposit collection service on the amount of savings and the source of those savings. In a follow-up evaluation, researchers introduced design tweaks to test the impact of reducing collection costs on individuals’ savings behavior.
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The Impact of Low-Cost Nudges and Improved Communication on Medicaid Take-Up in Oregon
Katherine Baicker , Bill J. Wright, Ginny Garcia-Alexander, Margarette A. WellerState level Medicaid expansion under the Affordable Care Act (ACA) led to significant gains in insurance coverage, yet take-up remains low among many high-need populations. Researchers conducted a randomized controlled trial to study the impact of improved communication and low-cost behaviorally informed “nudges” on Medicaid take-up.
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Labor Markets
Evaluating the Impact of Working from Home on Productivity and Work-Life Balance in China
Nicholas Bloom , James Liang, John Roberts, Zhichun Jenny YingResearchers analyzed the impact of working from home on productivity and work-life balance by randomly assigning some employees of a call center in China to work from home. Working from home significantly increased employees’ productivity and job satisfaction, although they were less likely to be promoted than similar-performing peers working in the office.
Education
Menstruation and Education in Nepal
Rebecca Thornton
, Emily Oster
Researchers introduced a convenient and hygienic sanitary product, reusable menstrual cups, to Nepalese girls in the seventh and eighth grades. Their evaluation addressed several questions: Is menstruation as large a barrier to education as many believe? Does switching to modern sanitary products increase attendance and school performance among girls? Results showed that girls in Nepal missed...
Finance, Health
Extending Health Insurance to the Informal Sector Through Microfinance in Nicaragua
Erica Field, Rebecca Thornton
, Laurel Hatt, Mursaleena Islam, Freddy Solis Diaz, Martha Gonzalez Monada, Anne Fitzpatrick
This evaluation measured the determinants of insurance enrollment as well as the impacts of having insurance for informal sector workers by randomly varying the costs and convenience of signing up for a government health insurance program available to formal and informal sector workers in Nicaragua. Overall, take-up of the insurance and retention rates were low, and enrolling in the program did...
Education
Incentives to Learn: A Merit-Based Girls' Scholarship Program in Kenya
Approximately 85 percent of primary school age children in western Kenya are enrolled in school, but only about one-third of students finish primary school. Dropout rates are typically higher for girls; in 2001 the 6th grade dropout rate was 10 percent for girls and 7 percent for boys among students in this study’s comparison schools at baseline. This project was introduced in part to assist...
Health
The Demand for and Impact of Learning HIV Status in Malawi
Rebecca Thornton
, Susan Godlonton, Nicole Angotti, Agatha Bula, Lauren Gaydosh, Sara Yeatman, Eitan Zeev Kimchi
While even very small incentives encouraged people to return for their HIV test results, rapid testing in the home had the greatest impact on program take-up. However, for most people, learning status did not substantially change their behavior.
Education
Balsakhi Remedial Tutoring in Vadodara and Mumbai, India
Researchers evaluated the impact of the Balsakhi Program, a remedial tutoring education intervention implemented in schools in Vadodara and Mumbai, India, on student learning. The program significantly improved student test scores in both locations.
Labor Markets
Discrimination in the Job Market in the United States
Researchers examined the level of racial discrimination in the United States labor market by randomly assigning identical résumés black-sounding or white-sounding names and observing the impact on requests for interviews from employers. Results found that résumés with white-sounding names received 50 percent more callbacks than those with black names, indicating that, all other things being equal...