Researchers worked with Innovations for Poverty Action and the University of Ghana Medical School to design, implement, and conduct a randomized evaluation of the impacts of a group CBT curriculum on low-income individuals in rural Ghana. CBT improved participants’ mental and physical well-being, socio-emotional and cognitive skills, and economic outcomes two to three months later. Results held true whether participants had reported mental distress before the program or not, suggesting that CBT has the potential to address both mental health vulnerability and participants’ mental bandwidth regardless of mental health status.

Researchers conducted a randomized evaluation to test whether the position of a trained lead farmer within a community’s social network affected other farmers’ decisions to adopt a new agricultural technology in Malawi. Results suggest that having access to multiple lead farmers/central individuals has the potential to increase adoption and speed the diffusion process of the technology.

Despite recent economic growth in Bangladesh, food insecurity remains widespread. Researchers evaluated the impact of an agricultural training program for farmer groups on technology adoption in rural Bangladesh, and investigated what drives adoption and who is affected by the training, both directly and indirectly.

Researchers in Zambia evaluated the impact of teaching husbands about the dangers of maternal mortality on their acceptance of family planning methods.

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, program invitees reported reductions in self-reported savings, as well as more disagreements with family members over how to spend remittances. The program may have encouraged participants to seek more accurate information on household spending and saving.

Researchers are conducting a randomized evaluation of a subsidized housing assistance program for refugees in Jordan to assess its impact on their economic outcomes, psychological well-being, long-term migration decisions, and social integration into their host community.

In Colombia, researchers evaluated the impacts of a national computer distribution program (Computers for Education) on student test scores, time spent on learning, and attitudes towards education. The program had no effect on math or Spanish test scores, hours of study, or perceptions of school. Researchers found that, in practice, teachers only used the computers to teach computer usage skills, rather than the range of subjects for which they were intended.

Researchers, in partnership with Kimanya Ngeyo Foundation for Science and Education in Uganda, evaluated the impact of a program that trained teachers to learn like scientists: posing questions, framing hypotheses, and using real-world experience wherever possible. Researchers found positive impacts on classroom dynamics, teacher pedagogy, student learning, and creativity, with impacts on student learning sustained for four years.

In partnership with Melchia Investments, a private Ghanaian technology company, researchers are conducting a pilot randomized evaluation to identify the effectiveness of a new tax collection technology in increasing property tax revenues for local governments.

In many countries around the world, there is growing concern that certain groups of people may face job market discrimination based on physical appearance. To test this theory, researchers randomly submitted resumes with photos of people with varying levels of attractiveness to measure the effect on prospective employer interest. They found that, on average, resumes with attractive photos were 36 percent more likely to receive a callback than resumes with unattractive photos.

In Kazakhstan, researchers tested whether offering youth community service grants and training impacted their level of community engagement, pro-social behavior, life skills, and labor market outcomes. Engaging youth in civic service and/or training had little to no effect on these outcomes one-year post-program, with some evidence of negative training effects on labor market outcomes.