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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 Deliberative Political Campaigns on Voter Behavior in the Philippines

Cecilia Pe Lero
Gabriel López-Moctezuma
Daniel Rubenson
Researchers partnered with two political parties in the Philippines to evaluate the effect of deliberative campaigns on voter turnout and vote shares. While deliberative town halls did not increase voter turnout, results suggest that they were effective in increasing vote shares by changing voters’...

Enabling Young Readers: A Primary School Reading Program in the Philippines

Ama Baafra Abeberese
Todd Kumler
Researchers evaluated a 31-day read-a-thon where students were encouraged to read as many books as possible through daily reading activities in school, such as storytelling sessions, reading games, and posters that display each class’s progress. Overall, the results suggest that encouraging an...

The Impact of Financial Education for Foreign Domestic Workers in Singapore

Rashmi Barua
Kartini Shastry
Researchers evaluated the impact of a financial literacy program for Filipino domestic workers based in Singapore on their financial knowledge, behavior, savings, and remittances. While there was no evidence that being invited to join the program had any impact on financial knowledge or behavior...

Sensitivity to Interest Rates and Account Ownership Requirements for a Commitment Savings Account in the Philippines

Researchers worked with First Valley Bank in the Philippines to evaluate the impact of varying the interest rate and account ownership requirements on demand for commitment savings accounts. While savings account take-up was 23 percent, neither the interest rates nor the ownership requirements...

The Impact of a School-Based Smoking Prevention Program in Indonesia

Margaret Triyana
Justin White
Researchers conducted a randomized evaluation to measure the impact of a school-based program that used a non-monetary penalty and regular monitoring to prevent adolescent tobacco use. The program reduced the probability that adolescents smoked, with effects sustained three months after the program...

The Psychology of Debt: An Experiment in the Philippines

Researchers are testing whether giving vendors money to pay off their outstanding debts or offering financial literacy trainings can help break these borrowers' cycles of debt.

The Health Impacts and Effective Delivery of Maternal Cash Transfers in Myanmar

Elisa Maffioli
Researchers are testing whether delivering cash through governmental institutions or through an existing MFI is more cost-effective and easier to scale-up.

Local Elites and Targeted Social Programs in Indonesia

Vivi Alatas
Ririn Purnamasari
Matthew Wai-Poi
Researchers conducted a randomized evaluation to study the impact of elite capture in a conditional cash transfer program in Indonesia. Elite capture existed in some programs, but the welfare losses created were small, suggesting that improving administrative capabilities in targeting methods might...