Policy Insights

What have we learned from randomized evaluations that policymakers, practitioners, and funders can use to improve social programs? J-PAL’s Policy Insights, organized by sector, highlight lessons emerging across multiple studies and the mechanisms that help explain the results.

J-PAL’s Sector Chairs and staff draw these insights from relevant randomized evaluations, updating and adding insights as the body of evidence grows. Each Policy Insight briefly summarizes their perspective on the evidence on a specific topic, with links to the original research and policy summaries. Read this blog post for more information about how we develop Policy Insights.

When combined with a detailed understanding of context and program implementation, we hope these insights can be practical inputs for policy and program design. For examples of how insights from randomized evaluations have informed policy, visit our Evidence to Policy page.

Three Female Students With Teacher Building Robot Vehicle In After School Computer Coding Class

Advancing women’s representation and opportunities in STEM fields through exposure to role models

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In high-income countries, exposure to women role models often positively impacts women students’ participation and educational performance in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) fields, by improving students’ perceptions and aspirations of having STEM careers.
Woman with three children in childcare center in Ahmedabad, Gujarat, India

Access to childcare to improve women’s economic empowerment

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Access to childcare can increase women’s employment outcomes by enabling their labor force participation, shift to more desirable work, or increase the productivity in their businesses. However, in cases where there are additional barriers to working outside the home, childcare may not be sufficient...
A female worker is selling clothes and earning cash.

The impacts of economic interventions on intimate partner violence

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An estimated one in every three women worldwide has suffered physical or sexual violence by an intimate partner in her lifetime. Achieving gender equality and eliminating violence against women are major global development goals. One popular strategy to reduce IPV is to increase women’s access to...
Improving student learning: impacts by gender

Improving student learning: Impacts by gender

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Most programs to improve student learning have similar impacts on girls and boys. However, policymakers should consider potential different effects by gender while designing programs since, in some cases, program design choices led to different impacts on girls and boys.
Woman in Ghana stands in front of her roadside restaurant preparing food

Designing financial services and social protection programs to enhance women’s economic empowerment

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Providing women in low- and middle-income countries with financial resources or financial services did not consistently lead to economic empowerment if women were unable to maintain control over the use of funds within their households. Financial inclusion and social protection programs should...
Women using a cookstove in India. Photo: Thomas Chupein | J-PAL/IPA

Biomass cookstoves to reduce indoor air pollution and fuel use

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Despite their positive results in the lab, biomass cookstoves designed to reduce smoke exposure and/or increase fuel efficiency did not substantially improve health in several randomized evaluations in the real world. Many people did not want to buy or maintain them, did not use them enough, and...
A girl in school in India

Increasing student enrollment and attendance: impacts by gender

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Reducing the costs and increasing the perceived benefits of education increase student participation for both boys and girls, and successful programs tend to help the gender with the lowest initial attendance most.
Adolescent girls in India

Reducing adolescent pregnancy by increasing educational and economic opportunities in low- and middle-income countries

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Interventions that changed perceptions about girls’ abilities and opportunities or increased the educational and economic opportunities available to them encouraged girls and young women to delay pregnancy.