Information about service provision in Uganda is insufficient to affect voting behaviour

The quality of service provision in Uganda varies greatly across regions and between villages, and yet evidence suggests citizens’ are unable to assess these differences. A research experiment used SMS messages about public services to help Ugandans make informed voting decisions, but it found no effect on voting outcomes. Here is why information alone is sometimes insufficient to affect political behaviour

SMS texts on corruption help Ugandan voters hold elected councillors accountable at the polls

Many politicians manipulate information to prevent voters from holding them accountable; however, mobile text messages may make it easier for nongovernmental organizations to credibly share information on official corruption that is difficult for politicians to counter directly. We test the potential for texts on budget management to improve democratic accountability by conducting a large (n = 16,083) randomized controlled trial during the 2016 Ugandan district elections. In cooperation with a local partner, we compiled, simplified, and text-messaged official information on irregularities in local government budgets. Verified recipients of messages that described more irregularities than expected reported voting for incumbent councillors 6% less often; verified recipients of messages conveying fewer irregularities than expected reported voting for incumbent councillors 5% more often. The messages had no observable effect on votes for incumbent council chairs, potentially due to voters\u27 greater reliance on other sources of information for higher profile elections. These mixed results suggest that text messages on budget corruption help voters hold some politicians accountable in settings where elections are not free and fair

Individualized text messages about public services fail to sway voters: evidence from a field experiment on Ugandan elections

Mobile communication technologies can provide citizens access to information that is tailored to their specific circumstances. Such technologies may therefore increase citizens' ability to vote in line with their interests and hold politicians accountable. In a large-scale randomized controlled trial in Uganda (n = 16,083), we investigated whether citizens who receive private, timely, and individualized text messages by mobile phone about public services in their community punished or rewarded incumbents in local elections in line with the information. Respondents claimed to find the messages valuable and there is evidence that they briefly updated their beliefs based on the messages; however, the treatment did not cause increased votes for incumbents where public services were better than expected nor decreased votes where public services were worse than anticipated. The considerable knowledge gaps among citizens identified in this study indicate potential for communication technologies to effectively share civic information. Yet the findings imply that when the attribution of public service outcomes is difficult, even individualized information is unlikely to affect voting behavior

Voter Information Campaigns and Political Accountability: Cumulative Findings From a Preregistered Meta-analysis of Coordinated Trials

Voters may be unable to hold politicians to account if they lack basic information about their representatives’ performance. Civil society groups and international donors therefore advocate using voter information campaigns to improve democratic accountability. Yet, are these campaigns effective? Limited replication, measurement heterogeneity, and publication biases may undermine the reliability of published research. We implemented a new approach to cumulative learning, coordinating the design of seven randomized controlled trials to be fielded in six countries by independent research teams. Uncommon for multisite trials in the social sciences, we jointly preregistered a meta-analysis of results in advance of seeing the data. We find no evidence overall that typical, nonpartisan voter information campaigns shape voter behavior, although exploratory and subgroup analyses suggest conditions under which informational campaigns could be more effective. Such null estimated effects are too seldom published, yet they can be critical for scientific progress and cumulative, policy-relevant learning.FSW – Publicaties zonder aanstelling Universiteit Leide

Voter information campaigns and political accountability: cumulative findings from a preregistered meta-analysis of coordinated trials

Voters may be unable to hold politicians to account if they lack basic information about their representatives’ performance. Civil society groups and international donors therefore advocate using voter information campaigns to improve democratic accountability. Yet, are these campaigns effective? Limited replication, measurement heterogeneity, and publication biases may undermine the reliability of published research. We implemented a new approach to cumulative learning, coordinating the design of seven randomized controlled trials to be fielded in six countries by independent research teams. Uncommon for multisite trials in the social sciences, we jointly preregistered a meta-analysis of results in advance of seeing the data. We find no evidence overall that typical, nonpartisan voter information campaigns shape voter behavior, although exploratory and subgroup analyses suggest conditions under which informational campaigns could be more effective. Such null estimated effects are too seldom published, yet they can be critical for scientific progress and cumulative, policy-relevant learning

TEMPERATURE-DEPENDENCE OF THE ELECTRON SPIN-LATTICE RELAXATION IN LITHIUM-METHYLAMINE SOLUTIONS

The temperature dependence of the electron spin-lattice relaxation time, T1e, is reported for the lithium-methylamine system. Samples of 6.5-21.1 mol % metal (mpm) have relaxation times in the range 0.6 × 10-7-8 × 10-7 s. The electronic g factor is 2.00172 ± 0.00002 for all concentrations. It is demonstrated for this nonfluctuating system that dT1e/dT is a sensitive means for determining the concentration at which the metal-nonmetal transition occurs. The present study indicates this transition takes place between 13.4 and 15.6 mpm in the temperature range 160-260 K. © 1980 American Chemical Society

ELECTRON-SPIN-LATTICE AND NUCLEAR-SPIN-LATTICE RELAXATION AND THE METAL-NONMETAL TRANSITION IN LITHIUM-METHYLAMINE SOLUTIONS

Electron-spin-resonance studies of fluid solutions of lithium in anhydrous methylamine are reported. Electron-spin-lattice relaxation times (T1e) are reported for solution compositions ranging from 2 to 33.6 mole% metal (MPM). Values of T1e increase by an order of magnitude as the system moves through a metal-nonmetal transition located at approximately 14 MPM. In contrast previously published nuclear- (Li7) spin-lattice relaxation times (T1n) decrease by approximately two orders of magnitude in the transition from the itinerant- to localized-electron regime. An emphasis is placed on the contrasting relaxation behavior of both nuclear and electron spins in the two regimes. In the case of electron-spin relaxation, it is argued that the transition brings about fundamental changes in the nature of the electron (spin) response to external fluctuations at the Larmor frequency. Corresponding changes in the nuclear relaxation behavior in the transition region are assessed in terms of the localization of unpaired electrons at a particular nuclear site. Specifically, electron-nuclear reside times (TNMR) are evaluated as a function of lithium composition, with TNMR10-15sec at20MPM and 5×10-14sec at5 MPM. The compositional dependence of this parameter is of considerable importance both in the discussion of changes in the magnetic (nuclei and electron) properties in the transition region and in the nature of the transition. The implications of these investigations to the nature of the metal-nonmetal transition in lithium-methylamine solutions are discussed. In particular, it is established that changes in both magnetic resonance (NMR, ESR) and transport properties in the lithium-methylamine system (attributed to delocalization of the electronic wave function) occur at approximately the same lithium concentration. In contrast, corresponding studies of the sodium-ammonia system at temperatures close to the critical consolute temperature yield different values for the critical concentration when one compares the magnetic resonance and transport properties. In this regard we emphasize the important differences in intrinsic sensitivity of the two techniques in monitoring the onset of electron delocalization. We suggest that the apparent coincidence in critical concentration in the lithium-methylamine system is indirect evidence against large-scale inhomogeneities in the transition region. A description of the transition in this system is given which attempts to incorporate both the effects of electron-electron correlations and disorder. © 1979 The American Physical Society

Titling community land to prevent deforestation: An evaluation of a best-case program in Morona-Santiago, Ecuador

Assigning land title to collective landholders is one of the primary policies land management agencies use to avoid deforestation worldwide. Such programs are designed to improve the ability of landholders to legally exclude competing users and thereby strengthen incentives to manage forests for long-term benefits. Despite the prevalence of this hypothesis, findings about the impacts of land titling programs on deforestation are mixed. Evidence is often unreliable because programs are targeted according to factors that independently influence the conversion of forests. We evaluate a donor-funded land titling and land management program for indigenous communities implemented in Morona-Santiago, Ecuador. This program offers a close to best case scenario for a land titling program to reduce deforestation because of colonization pressure, availability of payments when titled communities maintain forests, and limited opportunities for commercial agriculture. We match plots in program areas with similar plots outside program areas on covariates that influence the conversion of forests. Based on matched comparisons, we do not find evidence that land titling or community management plans reduced forest loss in the five years following legal recognition. The results call into question land titling as a direct deforestation strategy and suggests land titling is better viewed a precursor to other programs

ELECTRON-SPIN-LATTICE AND NUCLEAR-SPIN-LATTICE RELAXATION AND THE METAL-NONMETAL TRANSITION IN LITHIUM-METHYLAMINE SOLUTIONS

Electron-spin-resonance studies of fluid solutions of lithium in anhydrous methylamine are reported. Electron-spin-lattice relaxation times (T1e) are reported for solution compositions ranging from 2 to 33.6 mole% metal (MPM). Values of T1e increase by an order of magnitude as the system moves through a metal-nonmetal transition located at approximately 14 MPM. In contrast previously published nuclear- (Li7) spin-lattice relaxation times (T1n) decrease by approximately two orders of magnitude in the transition from the itinerant- to localized-electron regime. An emphasis is placed on the contrasting relaxation behavior of both nuclear and electron spins in the two regimes. In the case of electron-spin relaxation, it is argued that the transition brings about fundamental changes in the nature of the electron (spin) response to external fluctuations at the Larmor frequency. Corresponding changes in the nuclear relaxation behavior in the transition region are assessed in terms of the localization of unpaired electrons at a particular nuclear site. Specifically, electron-nuclear reside times (TNMR) are evaluated as a function of lithium composition, with TNMR10-15sec at20MPM and 5×10-14sec at5 MPM. The compositional dependence of this parameter is of considerable importance both in the discussion of changes in the magnetic (nuclei and electron) properties in the transition region and in the nature of the transition. The implications of these investigations to the nature of the metal-nonmetal transition in lithium-methylamine solutions are discussed. In particular, it is established that changes in both magnetic resonance (NMR, ESR) and transport properties in the lithium-methylamine system (attributed to delocalization of the electronic wave function) occur at approximately the same lithium concentration. In contrast, corresponding studies of the sodium-ammonia system at temperatures close to the critical consolute temperature yield different values for the critical concentration when one compares the magnetic resonance and transport properties. In this regard we emphasize the important differences in intrinsic sensitivity of the two techniques in monitoring the onset of electron delocalization. We suggest that the apparent coincidence in critical concentration in the lithium-methylamine system is indirect evidence against large-scale inhomogeneities in the transition region. A description of the transition in this system is given which attempts to incorporate both the effects of electron-electron correlations and disorder. © 1979 The American Physical Society