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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.

The Impact of Emergency Cash Assistance in a Pandemic

Pablo Querubin
Researchers conducted a randomized evaluation in Colombia to assess the effects of emergency cash assistance on the well-being of households. Recipients of the UCT experienced improved financial health, food access, and psychological well-being. Colombia’s newly implemented mobile money system...

Introducing Financial Services to Native Amazonians in Bolivia

Centering on one native Amazonian society (Tsimane’) and partnering with a Bolivian non- profit, researchers evaluated the impact of providing Tsimane’ households with lockboxes on their savings activity, consumption, and well-being. Providing lockboxes increased household financial assets but had...

The Use of Self-Help Groups as a Savings Commitment Device in Chile

Felipe Kast
Stephan Meier
Researchers in Chile compared the effects of self-help peer groups and text-message feedback on entrepreneurs’ ability to make regular deposits into a savings account. Receiving feedback by text message increased savings by almost as much as being a member of a self-help group, suggesting that the...

Eliminating Behavioral Barriers to Saving through a Tablet App for the Base of the Pyramid in Paraguay

Viviane Azevedo
Liliana Olarte
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.

Improving the Design of Conditional Transfer Programs in Colombia

Researchers in Bogotá, Colombia, evaluated whether changing the timing and type of CCTs could lead to greater impact on educational attainment. All CCT variations had similarly positive impacts on school attendance, but transfers conditional on continued education had a greater impact on secondary...

The Role of Financial Incentives in Recruiting Public Sector Employees

The ability and integrity of civil servants can have important consequences for the lives of the poor. Researchers analyzed the impact of financial incentives and characteristics of the work environment on attracting qualified applicants to Mexico’s public sector. Offering higher wages attracted...

Local Leadership and the Voluntary Provision of Public Goods in Bolivia

María P. Recalde
Researchers used a randomized evaluation to test how local leaders influence the voluntary provision of public goods. They solicited contributions for environmental education books, which all members of the community would be able to access, and varied whether leaders made public contributions. They...