Evaluations

Policy Publications

Search our database of policy briefcases, bulletins, and evidence reviews. Briefcases summarize the results and policy recommendations from one randomized evaluation, while bulletins synthesize the broader policy lessons emerging from multiple evaluations on the same topic. Evidence reviews summarize an existing academic literature review, like a handbook chapter or white paper, for a policy audience.

Displaying 1-9 of 18

Delivering Resilience: A Decade of Experimental Research on Flood-Tolerant Seeds in India

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Last Updated:
August 31, 2015
Small-scale farmers, who adopted flood-tolerant rice, reduced their vulnerability to seasonal flooding, increased investment in their farms, increased productivity, and subsequently increased their profits, whether or not flooding occurred. Targeting agro-dealers with information, holding farmer...
Cover of SJY Playbook

Going the Last Mile: Lifting ultra-poor households out of extreme poverty

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Last Updated:
October 27, 2023
The Bihar Rural Livelihoods Promotion Society (known as JEEViKA), NGO Bandhan-Konnagar, and J-PAL South Asia launched the Satat Jeevikoparjan Yojana: Ending Ultra Poverty at Scale, a playbook developed for government and civil society organizations working towards ending extreme poverty. The...
Community members attend a meeting promoting the use of women's help desks.

Improving policing in the midst of patriarchy

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Last Updated:
October 25, 2022
In India, creating designated women’s help desks (WHDs) in police stations increased the registration of crimes against women, particularly when staffed by female officers. Key results: The WHD program led to more registrations of cases of violence against women. Stations with WHDs registered 1.5...
Two women sit face to face. The woman on the left holds a pedometer and is speaking to the woman on the right.

Stepping Up to Combat Urban Diabetes

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Last Updated:
July 7, 2021
Providing financial incentives to walk at least 10,000 steps per day led to increased exercise and moderate physical and mental health improvements among diabetics and prediabetics in India, with "threshold" contracts being especially effective for diabetics who are more impatient.
women holding hand out to receive medication

On Track: Health Care, Patient Data, and Provider Performance

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Last Updated:
June 8, 2020
Biometric tracking increased the likelihood that patients adhered to recommended tuberculosis treatment, improved health worker attendance, and reduced misreporting of patient data by health workers.
Young students in India sitting outside

Reshaping Adolescents’ Gender Attitudes: Encouraging Students to Discuss Gender Equality in the Classroom

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Last Updated:
May 1, 2019
A series of interactive classroom discussions about gender equality over two and a half years increased students’ support for gender equality and led students to enact more gender-equitable behavior in the state of Haryana, India.
Biometric authentication using thumbprint

Smartcards for Smarter Payments

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Last Updated:
September 6, 2017
In India, a biometrically authenticated payment system reduced corruption and substantially improved the delivery of government social assistance programs despite partial implementation.
Children do arithmetic in chalk on a stone floor in India

Roll Call: Getting Children into School

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Last Updated:
August 8, 2017
Student participation is sensitive to the perceived costs and benefits of education. Although the costs are immediate and easy to observe, school quality and the long-run benefits of education are more difficult to perceive. Children, not only their parents, are important to consider when designing...

Make It Rain

Last Updated:
Last Updated:
February 9, 2016
Weather index insurance protects farmers against losses from extreme weather and facilitates investment in their farms, but randomized evaluations in South Asia and sub-Saharan Africa have shown low demand for these products at market prices, suggesting the need for alternative approaches.