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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.

Default Effects and Follow-On Behavior: Evidence From An Electricity Pricing Program

Researchers partnered with the Sacramento Municipal Utility District in California to evaluate the effects of a variety of enrollment schemes in time-varying pricing plans on electricity consumption. Results show that households which were enrolled in time-varying pricing plans by default tended to...

The Impact of Exposure to Discordant Media on Political Polarization in Turkey

Ahmet Akbiyik
Jeremy Bowles
Researchers evaluated the impact of exposure to and incentives to consume discordant media on political attitudes and behaviors in Turkey. Participants changed their media consumption habits, trusted discordant media sources more, and had less polarized attitudes towards the government, but did not...

Community Service Grants to Foster Social and Economic Integration for Youth in Kazakhstan

In Kazakhstan, researchers tested whether offering youth community service grants and training impacted their level of community engagement, pro-social behavior, life skills, and labor market outcomes. Engaging youth in civic service and/or training had little to no effect on these outcomes one-year...

The Impact of Informational Interventions about Police Alternatives on Police Reliance in the United States

Meghna Baskar
Tony Cheng
Rei Mariman
Researchers conducted a randomized evaluation to test the impact of providing information about police alternatives on individuals' reported likelihood of calling the police and a follow-up randomized evaluation to understand key public-safety stakeholders’ receptiveness of police alternatives. The...

Impact of Loans and Grants on Microenterprise Growth in Egypt

Mohamed El Komi
In partnership with three microfinance institutions (MFIs), researchers conducted a randomized evaluation to measure the impact of providing loans, cash grants, or in-kind grants on microentrepreneurs’ business decisions, outcomes, and overall welfare. All three types of capital assistance led to...

The Impact of a Digital Credit for Small-Scale Farmers in Ghana

Researchers are evaluating the impact of an innovative mobile phone-based digital finance program on loan repayment rates, investment decisions, savings, and use of other financial services, as well as agricultural yields and profits.