New investments by Stanford Impact Labs to help support the work of SIEPR scholars
Can purpose-built AI tools close the gap between people and the systems meant to serve them? What evidence do governments need to make smarter policy decisions about evolving social needs? How can research enable health systems to deliver better care?
These are among the questions driving the eight Stanford-led research teams awarded 2026 funding from Stanford Impact Labs (SIL). Three of the teams are led by SIEPR senior fellows Marcella Alsan, Arun Chandrasekhar, Petra Persson and Maya Rossin-Slater.
As social scientists and policymakers know all too well, pressing social challenges rarely suffer from a lack of promising ideas as to how to address them. More often, what is missing is rigorous evidence about which approaches work, for whom, and under what conditions. SIL works to help fill that gap by investing in research designed not only to advance scientific understanding, but to generate knowledge that can be put to practical use.
Alsan, a physician-economist, is receiving funding for her ongoing work into a critical but often overlooked part of the American healthcare system: local jails. Alsan and her collaborators are working with the National Sheriffs’ Association to identify ways of improving health outcomes for inmates, who suffer from high rates of suicide and drug and alcohol-related deaths.
Persson and Rossin-Slater, both economists, are teaming with Sweden’s Public Health Agency to shed light on a global phenomenon: smartphone use among children. As Sweden rolls out measures that limit access to mobile devices, Persson and Rossin-Slater seek to examine the policies’ effects on sleep, mental health, school performance, and crime.
Chandrasekhar, a development economist, is exploring solutions to help farming families in India cope with the volatility of extreme weather. As part of that effort, he and his collaborators are running a randomized trial across hundreds of villages to test whether building awareness of a government subsidy can boost program enrollment and buffer their losses.
In all, this year’s investments by SIL support research teams from Stanford’s School of Humanities and Sciences, Stanford School of Medicine, and Stanford Law School working across the United States, South Asia, and Europe. Each project shares a common approach: partnering with collaborators beyond the university to generate evidence that can inform consequential decisions, enhance programs, and ultimately improve people’s lives.
To learn more about all of the research projects selected for SIL investments in 2026, click here.
This story was adapted from an announcement originally published on July 22, 2026 by Stanford Impact Labs.
