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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.

Recycling Program Take-up and Participation in Northern Peru

Alberto Chong
Jeremy Shapiro
Researchers examined the effect of a series of informational messages on participation in a recycling program in Peru. The messages sought to elicit pressures such as social norms, peer comparison, conformity, authority, and the environmental or social benefits to increased participation. They found...

Integration through Friendship—Evidence from a Peer Matching Program in Sweden

Increasing levels of migration to the European Union have created significant challenges for governments to ensure migrants fully integrate and thrive in their host societies, but there is little rigorous evidence that evaluates current programs that promote social inclusion. Researchers are...

Returns to Consulting in the Philippines

Greg Fischer
Researchers in the Philippines are examining the various constraints hindering SME growth and evaluating whether graduate business students can effectively teach management skills and improve small business performance.

The Impact of Outreach and Assistance from Navigators on Medicaid Renewals in the United States

Allison Espeseth
Researchers assessed the impact of outreach on Medicaid retention; outreach messages provided a reminder to renew as well as information about how to obtain free one-on-one assistance with renewal processes from health insurance navigators. Outreach using pre-recorded calls prevented denials due to...

The Impact of Fee-for-Service Schemes on Health Service Utilization in the Democratic Republic of Congo

Juliette Seban
Researchers tested a fee-for-service scheme, a type of performance pay, at health facilities in the Democratic Republic of Congo to evaluate its impact on health service utilization. While fee-for-service facilities invested more effort in attracting patients, this increase did not translate into...

Measuring Competition Through Subsidies in Sierra Leone's Cocoa Market

Tristan Reed
In order to measure the level of competition among traders in Sierra Leone’s cocoa market, researchers conducted a randomized evaluation to test the impact of delivering subsidies to cocoa traders on prices that traders paid to cocoa farmers. While the bonus payments did not affect the prices paid...

Matching Donations to Increase Charitable Giving in the United States

Altruistic individuals may hesitate to give when they doubt the quality of a charity, but knowing that a high-profile donor supports the charity might alleviate these concerns. Researchers evaluated the impact of publicizing a matching grant from the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation (BMGF) on...

The Impact of Peer Messaging to Combat the Spread of Covid-19 in Zambia

Researchers conducted a randomized evaluation in Zambia to test the impact of a peer-based information campaign, consisting of SMS messages and small cash incentives, on people’s adherence to Covid-19 health protocols. Participants forwarded public health SMSs when they were encouraged to do so, yet...