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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.

Understanding Male Fertility Preferences in Zambia

Alessandra Voena
Researchers in Zambia evaluated the impact of teaching husbands about the dangers of maternal mortality on their acceptance of family planning methods.

Long-run and Intergenerational Impacts of Child Health Gains from Deworming in Kenya

Joan Hamory Hicks
Patricia Kariger
Michael Walker
Researchers conducted long-term follow-ups a mass school-based deworming program in western Kenya, which had substantially improved health and school participation of treated children, as well as of untreated children in treatment schools and children in neighboring schools in the short-term...

Group Lending versus Individual Lending in Mongolia

Britta Augsburg
Emla Fitzsimons
Ralph De Haas
Heike Harmgart
Researchers compared the impacts of providing group- or individual-liability loans to women in rural Mongolia. Access to group loans increased business ownership and food consumption among poor women, while individual loans had no effect on these outcomes.

Information and Price Variations to Reduce Residential Energy Use in the United States

David Rapson
Researchers evaluated the effects of introducing price increases during peak periods and also real-time information about electricity usage to residential customers in the United States. Households that received feedback about usage reduced consumption and individuals were more responsive to pricing...

Using Deliberative Electoral Strategies to Overcome Clientelism in Benin

Town hall meetings in Benin reduced the ability of the most popular presidential candidate in that village to garner political support using clientelist tactics, and still appear to be effective for motivating people to attend the polls.

Mobile Phone Data Compared to Household Surveys to Evaluate the Impact of Cash Transfers in Togo

Emily Aiken
Suzanne Bellue
In Togo, researchers conducted a randomized evaluation to test the effect of cash grants on people's welfare and if using mobile phone data in impact evaluations yielded the same results as survey data. They found that the cash grant program increased food security, mental health, and self-perceived...

The Effect of School Choice on Student Outcomes in the United States

Julie Berry Cullen
Steven Levitt
School choice programs offer students more opportunities to attend schools with higher achievement and graduation levels. In partnership with the Chicago Public Schools, researchers examined the effects of a school choice program on several traditional student achievement outcomes. They used a...