Evaluations
Search our database of 995 randomized evaluations conducted by our affiliates in 84 countries. To browse summaries of key policy recommendations from a subset of these evaluations, visit the Policy Publications tab.
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Finance
Eliminating Behavioral Barriers to Saving through a Tablet App for the Base of the Pyramid in Paraguay
Jeanne Lafortune , Jose Tessada, Liliana Olarte, Viviane AzevedoDespite the benefits of accumulating savings, low-income individuals rarely use formal savings products. Researchers are partnering with a financial institution in Paraguay to evaluate the impact of a range of tablet-based applications, which remind people to save and help them make savings goals, on savings behavior of low-income individuals.
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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-sounding names, indicating that, all other things being equal, considerable racial discrimination exists in the American labor market.
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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 FitzpatrickThis 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 not provide an absolute cost savings for participants.
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Political Economy & Governance
Does Development Aid Undermine Political Accountability in Bangladesh?
Mushfiq Mobarak , Raymond GuiterasThere is little evidence to lend credence to or discredit the argument that development aid undermines political accountability. In Tanore district of Bangladesh, researchers tested the impact of providing external subsidies for sanitation projects on the behavior of local leaders and, subsequently, on constituents’ perception of their performance. They found that while constituents credited leaders for the sanitation program when the funding source was unknown, they did not credit local leaders when funding information was made transparent.
Education, Gender
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...
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.
Education
Computer-Assisted Learning Project with Pratham in India
In Vadodora, India, researchers studied the impact of supplementing classroom instruction with computer-assisted learning (CAL) in primary schools. CAL significantly improved student’s math scores, but was less cost-effective than the remedial tutor-based program, Balsakhi.
Education
Encouraging Teacher Attendance through Monitoring with Cameras in Rural Udaipur, India
Esther Duflo, Rema Hanna
, Stephen Ryan
This study estimated the effect of financial incentives on teacher attendance on students' attendance and math and language levels. The incentives increased teacher attendance and teaching time, and student test scores rose as a result.
Education, Health
Balwadi Deworming in India
Edward Miguel
, Gustavo Bobonis, Charu Puri Sharma
This study evaluated the impact of a preschool nutrition and health project that targeted anemia in the slums of Delhi, India on child health and school attendance. Results showed the program positively impacted weight-gain and school attendance, particularly for groups with high base-line rates of anemia.
Education, Political Economy & Governance
Can Informational Campaigns Raise Awareness and Local Participation in Primary Education in India?
Abhijit Banerjee, Esther Duflo, Rachel Glennerster
, Rukmini Banerji, Stuti Khemani
Researchers examined whether increasing community oversight and participation could improve education outcomes in Uttar Pradesh, India. Mobilizing community members to monitor local schools through Village Education Committees did not increase participation in school governance or improve education outcomes, but training local volunteers to teach basic reading outside school had a positive impact...