Researchers evaluated the impact of poverty reduction via an unconditional cash transfer to mothers on child neurodevelopment. Children in families that received a $333 monthly transfer displayed different brain activity patterns than children whose mothers received only $20 a month.

Researchers evaluated the impact of cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) and cash transfers on functional impairment (or difficulty performing daily tasks), depression, and food security among adults 55 and older living alone in Tamil Nadu, India. At a three-week follow-up, cash transfers improved participants’ reported ability to perform daily tasks and led to a small decline in depression, while neither CBT nor the combination of the two impacted these outcomes.

Researchers are working with small- and medium-sized enterprises in the leather goods and footwear manufacturing sector in Bangladesh to understand the role of information in the adoption of energy-efficient motors for stitching machines, as well as firms’ perception of and willingness to pay for the new technology. This study in ongoing and results are forthcoming.

Researchers evaluated a computer-based adaptive learning platform (Mindspark) for secondary school students in urban India to measure the impact of customized learning technology on student test scores. The program increased test scores across all groups of students and was cost-effective compared to traditional schooling models.

Researchers conducted a randomized evaluation to test the impact of offering frequent HIV testing on rates of marriage and pregnancy. Offering high-frequency, opt-out HIV testing to young women and their partners changed beliefs of partner’s sexual safety, accelerated marriage, and increased the probability of pregnancy.

Women of lower socioeconomic status adhere to recommended prenatal care regimens at lower rates, which can have adverse effects on both maternal and newborn outcomes. Researchers conducted a randomized evaluation to measure the impact a financial incentive of € 30 ($33.89) per visit per month on rates of treatment adherence and on health outcomes.

As of 2016, an estimated 151.6 million children aged 5 to 17 were engaged in child labor globally. For low-income households, economic shocks such as expensive accidents or illness are important determinants of child labor, as parents might have to send children to work for additional income. Researchers partnered with the National Rural Support Programme Insurance in Pakistan to introduce expanded health insurance services and evaluate the impact of insurance on child labor. The expanded insurance package reduced both the likelihood that children were working in a hazardous occupation and child labor earnings, especially for boys.

Researchers tested whether reminders delivered via text message improved knowledge and adoption of social distancing and handwashing. They found no evidence that individuals changed their self-reported behaviors; this finding may highlight limited effectiveness of SMS-based information campaigns after the initial phase of the pandemic.

Research has shown that HIV/AIDS impacts not only the health of infected individuals, but also their financial security, and the financial security of their households, often aggravating existing poverty. Researchers will introduce unconditional cash grants, coupled with financial planning sessions, to people living with HIV/AIDS to evaluate the impact on the health and financial security outcomes of participants.

Researchers partnered with the Côte d'Ivoire government to measure the short- and long-term impacts of a public works program, along with complementary trainings on basic entrepreneurship and job search skills. In the short term, the program led to a shift toward wage jobs (as opposed to self-employment), higher earnings and savings, and improved well-being. However, most of these effects dissipated in the long-run.

Researchers evaluated the impact impact of both general exposure to mass media and an intensive family planning campaign on contraception. Increasing exposure to general mass media reduced contraception use in this context. However, a high-quality family planning radio campaign offset the negative effect of general mass media and increased contraception use, lowered births and misperceptions about contraception, and increased reported welfare.

In three related evaluations in India, researchers introduced an early childhood reading and comprehension program (Shishuvachan) in different contexts—integrated into first-grade classes in Mumbai public schools, implemented in preschools that were specifically designed to implement this program, and integrated into established preschool classes—in order to measure its impact on early literacy rates. Results show that the Shishuvachan program was very effective in improving students' reading skills.

Researchers evaluated whether cash transfers and decision-making nudges could help low-income pregnant women in Nairobi, Kenya deliver where they wanted and in a high-quality facility. They found that cash transfers, conditioned on precommitment to a delivery facility, led to more effective birth planning and increased the likelihood that women delivered at higher-quality facilities.

Researchers evaluated whether offering individuals financial incentives to maintain their HIV-negative status could be an effective HIV prevention strategy in rural Malawi. The conditional cash transfer had no effect on HIV status or on self-reported sexual behavior. The receipt of the cash incentive actually increased the likelihood of risky sex among men but decreased risky sex among women.

In the United States, many people who are eligible for social and economic benefits do not claim those benefits. Researchers partnered with the U.S. Internal Revenue Service (IRS) to test the effectiveness of different messages to taxpayers designed to encourage them to claim certain tax benefits.