Thank you for the warm welcome during Elizabeth Linos’s visit to 🇪🇪 Estonia, where she joined great conversations with Estonian, Latvian, and Finish public servants about digital service excellence, data-informed practices, administrative burden, and making evidence part of everyday policymaking.

New in @pnas.org! Light-touch government outreach boosted take-up of the Child Tax Credit & stimulus payments among very low-income families—while higher-touch strategies added little. By: @elizabethlinos.bsky.social, J. Lasky-Fink, V. Dorie, @jrothst.bsky.social 🔗 www.pnas.org/doi/10.1073/...

🚨 We’re excited to share The People Lab’s 2025 Annual Report! Link 👉 peoplelab.hks.harvard.edu/wp-content/u... Here’s some of what you’ll find inside:

Don’t miss our next newsletter—coming soon! 📩 We only send a couple each year, with our biggest updates + findings. 👉 Sign up here: harvard.us9.list-manage.com/subscribe?u=...

🚨 ICYMI: The People Lab is growing — and we’re hiring! We’ve got two exciting opportunities: 🔹 Research Associate Fellow (rolling review) 🔹 Senior Project Manager (first review Sept 2, 2025) Learn more + apply here 👉 peoplelab.hks.harvard.edu/careers/

🚨 We’re hiring a Senior Project Manager! We are looking for an experienced project leader to manage complex, high-impact projects from start to finish—aligning research, operations, and strategy to improve how government serves the public. Apply here: careers.harvard.edu/job/senior-p...

Shoutout to our talented Du Bois Scholar, Jonora, for an outstanding final presentation! Her thoughtful lit review is already helping guide a new research venture at The People Lab. Grateful for your summer with us and excited for what’s next! 🙌

We're getting hundreds and hundreds of applications for this RA fellows position so if you're planning on applying, applying before August 14th is a great idea. Also, you got this! Take the leap and apply!

What an ulti-mutt honor to have Wilma sniff out our research! #Wilmasreview 🐶

We're so excited that you're excited about this position! We can't respond to the many many emails we're getting so here is a FAQ -> peoplelab.hks.harvard.edu/wp-content/u...

🚨 TPL is hiring a Research Associate Fellow! Are you passionate about using evidence to improve how government serves the public? Do you want to use your research & analytical skills for both social impact and cutting edge research? Apply here -> peoplelab.hks.harvard.edu/careers/

Ending programs like PMF means fewer skilled young professionals in government just when we need them most. Read @elizabethlinos.bsky.social‬'s interview with @harvardkennedy.bsky.social on how fellowships build a stronger public sector workforce: www.hks.harvard.edu/faculty-rese...

We’re so excited to share that Giovanny Martinez Rodriguez, who was one of our wonderful undergraduate fellows, has started a new role as TPL’s very first pre-doctoral fellow! Congratulations, Giovanny—we are thrilled to have you on our team! peoplelab.hks.harvard.edu/team/giovann...

🌟 It’s been a privilege to have @karlemilbendtsen.bsky.social as a visiting fellow at The People Lab. We’ve enjoyed engaging with your research on administrative errors, policy complexity, and more. Thank you, Karl-Emil, for your time and expertise! peoplelab.hks.harvard.edu/team/karl-em...

Our latest n=9 field test involved waffle cones. Results: instantly raised happiness scores by 200%. 🍦 #SweetIncentives #NudgeAndFudge #ConeformityBias

Exciting news! @elizabethlinos.bsky.social is presenting our latest working paper, "Interventions to Bolster Benefits Take-Up: Assessing Framing, Targeting, and Intensity," at the @pmra-1991.bsky.social conference in Seoul this week. Co-authors: Lasky-Fink, Dorie, and @jrothst.bsky.social. #PMRC

Still smiling, still researching! @thepeoplelab.bsky.social doing its thing.

🎉 We are thrilled to welcome three exceptional undergraduate research fellows to The People Lab for the summer! Please join us in saying hello to Manuel José Gonzalez, Jonora Calixte, and Elliott Serna. 👋

What does it take to build a truly functional public sector? @elizabethlinos.bsky.social recently explored this question with @harvardkennedy.bsky.social alumni and shared three key pillars:

We’re thrilled to celebrate Jessica and @elizabethlinos.bsky.social‬, whose article, “Improving Delivery of the Social Safety Net: The Role of Stigma,” just won the 2025 Beryl Radin Award for best article in @jpart1991.bsky.social 🎉

It’s Public Service Recognition Week! Take a moment to thank a public servant for all the work they do to provide the services and infrastructure that keep our communities running. #PublicServiceRecognitionWeek

New TPL Research! Attracting talent to government is hard — but not impossible. We found that government fellowship programs like the PMF program, Govern for America, Public Rights Project, and Foster America are powerful career launchpads into public service, with long-lasting effects 📊

We are SO EXCITED to have Yuki Chen join us as an undergraduate research fellow! Yuki is a junior at Harvard College and is focusing her research on public service programs. Learn more about her here -> peoplelab.hks.harvard.edu/team/yuki-ch...

Who works for the government and why does their work matter? Tune in to @c-span.bsky.social on 3/21 at 8 PM ET to catch @elizabethlinos.bsky.social talk with Michael Lewis about his new book! 📖 More airing times here -> www.c-span.org/event/book-t...

📄New working paper by @elizabethlinos.bsky.social, Lasky-Fink, Dorie, and @jrothst.bsky.social on ways to boost the take-up of anti-poverty benefits in CA! Light-touch outreach proved effective and had a high ROI, but findings on higher-touch outreach were mixed. www.hks.harvard.edu/publications...

How big is the US federal workforce really? @likeapple.bsky.social's latest @npr.org article adds excellent context to @elizabethlinos.bsky.social's recent conversation with @nprfreshair.bsky.social. Read here: www.npr.org/2025/03/06/n...

ICYMI: Terrance Smith joined us last week to discuss trust-building in government. Read the key takeaways here: www.hks.harvard.edu/faculty-rese...

A huge thank you to Terrance Smith for joining us and the Bloomberg Center for Cities at Harvard University to share his insights on trust and innovation in local government!

🎧Listen to TPL Faculty Director, @elizabethlinos.bsky.social on @nprfreshair.bsky.social! open.spotify.com/episode/0NRI... Learn more about our work on strengthening the government workforce here 👉 peoplelab.hks.harvard.edu/about/

"The past few weeks have made it clear: DOGE is not about fixing inefficiencies—it is about dismantling government itself." - @elizabethlinos.bsky.social Read more: bit.ly/3Qn1hRv

Join The People Lab as a 2025 Summer Research Fellow! Ideal for undergrads eager for hands-on research experience on public sector challenges. ⏰ Full-time, 12-week paid role. 📅 Apply by 3/5: peoplelab.hks.harvard.edu/careers/

The federal workforce isn't "bloated" - as @elizabethlinos.bsky.social explains, the real crisis is critical staffing shortages. Read more here: www.cbsnews.com/news/trump-f...

"The reality is this: if we want the federal government to efficiently and effectively deliver for Americans, we need to invest in strengthening it, not break it." Read this op-ed from Octavia Abell and @elizabethlinos.bsky.social for @govexec.bsky.social www.govexec.com/workforce/20...

ICYMI: Have you read TPL PhD student @nadiabell.bsky.social's recent op-ed in The Harvard Crimson? Read it here -> www.thecrimson.com/article/2025...

"The best advice I have for applying behavioral insights at an organization or system level is to start with the problem, the experience, and the people navigating it every day. The behavioral nudge should come last." @elizabethlinos.bsky.social chibe.upenn.edu/blog/how-to-...

🔔Thrilled to co-designed an RCT just launched by @au.dk @flokeppeler.bsky.social and Copenhagen Capacity! They are testing digital message strategies with 110,000 European nurses, using community-led designs to recruit healthcare workers to Denmark.

Please join us officially welcome Stella Kwon to The People Lab as an undergrad fellow! Stella recently returned from studying Urban Planning in Copenhagen and is majoring in Social Studies and Economics at Harvard. We’re thrilled to have her on board! peoplelab.hks.harvard.edu/team/stella-...

Efficient government? It's not about cutting costs indiscriminately but building stronger foundations. Invest in people, processes, & policies. @elizabethlinos.bsky.social and fellow HKS faculty weigh in on the future Department of Government Efficiency: www.hks.harvard.edu/faculty-rese...

🎧Listen in! @elizabethlinos.bsky.social and Stefano DellaVigna join the "Allegedly Does Not Replicate" podcast by @i4replication.bsky.social to dive into their research on scaling RCTs. Tune in for a delightfully nerdy conversation! creators.spotify.com/pod/show/i4r...

🎉 As we wrap up an incredible year at The People Lab, we're excited to share some of our highlights! Dive into our 2024 journey! 👇

🏛️ Excited to see @elizabethlinos.bsky.social quoted in a new article on pressing challenges and opportunities in local government hiring. Investing in a diverse, capable workforce is key to addressing systemic challenges effectively and equitably! Read more: www.bloomberg.com/news/article...

🎉 We're thrilled to have Noe Negri join The People Lab as our Assistant Director of Operations! With over 12 years of experience, she is already making everything run smoother and bringing operational excellence to our team. Welcome aboard, Noe! 🌟

Congrats to our very own @maxspohn.bsky.social for winning 3rd place in the Best Student Poster Award at @sjdm-tweets.bsky.social! 🏆 His research shows how partisans misjudge out-group ideological complexity, fueling distrust. Insights offer ways to reduce animosity. maxspohn.com/IdeologicalC...

The federal government transfers approximately $1.1 TRILLION dollars every year to state and local governments. But no one is really evaluating whether the programs deploying these funds are functioning, let alone increasing community well-being.

🚀New action-ready policy memo by @scientistsorg.bsky.social, co-authored by our director @elizabethlinos.bsky.social, Anna Harvey, Evan White, Roseanna Ander & Laura Feeney! It highlights the pivotal role of research-practitioner partnerships in supporting state & local gov't innovation.

🎤 Keeping the conference momentum going, The People Lab is heading to @sjdm-tweets.bsky.social. We're thrilled to have Jessica Lasky-Fink and @elizabethlinos.bsky.social presenting our research this Saturday. 🧵1/3

🌟The People Lab is on the move! Catch our team at @appam.bsky.social where we'll share insights from our studies on government outreach, housing policies, and evidence adoption. See you there! #2024APPAM 🧵1/4

Forget spreadsheets—today, we crunched the numbers on Sasha cuddles. Stats say 11/10! 🐶📈🐾 #EvidenceBasedPawlicy #RandomizedControlTails #NudgingWithNoses

Excited to see TPL Fellow Woojin Kim's research highlighted by Tyler Cowen as one of the most interesting job market papers this year! His paper explores political polarization's effects on medical practice. Congrats, Woojin! 🎉 Read more: marginalrevolution.com/marginalrevo...

Big thanks to @danhonig.bsky.social for linking rigorous research with practice in "Mission Driven Bureaucrats." The government workforce thrives on empowerment and trust! Learn more about Dan's work here -> danhonig.info