Evaluations
Search our database of 994 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.
Health
Can Higher Prices Stimulate Product Use? Evidence from a Randomized Experiment in Zambia
James Berry, Nava Ashraf
, Jesse M. Shapiro
Researchers in Zambia investigated what price should be charged in order to encourage the greatest use of chlorine. They found that the use of chlorine did decrease with higher prices, but this decline was partially offset by better targeting of the product to families who were more likely to use it.
Health, Labor Markets
The Role of Incentives in the Distribution of Public Goods in Zambia
In Lusaka, Zambia, researchers found that non-financial incentives were more effective than financial rewards at motivating hair stylists to sell female condoms to their customers.
Health, Gender
Contraceptive Adoption, Fertility, and the Family in Zambia
Erica Field, Nava Ashraf
, Jean Lee
Women who received private access to vouchers for contraceptives were more likely to take up and use contraception, compared to women whose husbands were involved in the voucher program. In contexts in which women have less bargaining power in family planning decisions, providing private access to contraceptives may be an important and effective means of enabling women to achieve their fertility...
Finance, Health, Gender
Health Education for Microcredit Clients in Peru
Dean Karlan
, Rita Hamad, Lia C.H. Fernald
Researchers assessed whether the provision of health training alongside microfinance services impacted the health or financial behavior of Peruvian microcredit clients. They found that additional health training affected neither.
Finance, Health, Gender
Impact of Malaria Education on the Health of Microfinance Clients
Dean Karlan
, Bram Thuysbaert, Bobbi Gray
Researchers are conducting a randomized evaluation to measure the impact of offering individuals in villages in Benin access to health education in addition to credit.
Finance, Health, Gender
Graduating the Ultra-Poor in Peru
Dean Karlan
, Bram Thuysbaert
Recent support for livelihoods programs has spurred interest in evaluating whether comprehensive “big push” interventions may allow for a sustainable transition to self-employment and a higher standard of living. To test this theory, in six countries researchers evaluated a multi-faceted approach aimed at improving long term income of the ultra-poor. They found that the approach had long-lasting...