RAND Research Topic: South America

Assessing the Effectiveness of Conditional Cash Transfers as a Development Mechanism

May 3, 2012

Conditional cash transfer programs (CCTs) are seen as particularly effective in low- and middle-income countries, but relatively little is known about the interface between the supply of services and program administration and specific human development outcomes. RAND Europe is assessing the effectiveness of CCTs, through a two-year grant from UK Economic Social Research Council and Department for International Development.

The Provision of Public Services by Criminal Organizations in Mexico and Brazil

Feb 15, 2012

Understanding how criminal gangs and other non-state actors compete with the state to provide public services, gain popular support, and jeopardize security can help policymakers counter these groups' activities.

Can Payment for Environmental Services Save the Rainforest?

Feb 9, 2012

The Forest Allowance Program (Programa Bolsa Floresta) is an avoided deforestation initiative in Brazil that pays the local population a monthly allowance for environmental services and increases deforestation monitoring and enforcement. RAND is studying this and similar initiatives to determine their success in reducing deforestation.

CLASP Addresses Challenges Latinos Face at Home and in United States

Dec 19, 2011

The Center for Latin American Social Policy conducts research throughout Latin America and the Latin American population in the United States in the areas of aging, social determinants and consequences of health, saving for retirement, social security coverage, labor market dynamics, and migration.

From Insurgency to Stability: Volume II: Insights from Selected Case Studies

Sep 7, 2011

This book examines six case studies of insurgencies from around the world to determine the key factors necessary for a successful transition from counterinsurgency to a more stable situation. The authors review the causes of each insurgency and the key players involved, and examine what the government did right — or wrong — to bring the insurgency to an end and to transition to greater stability.

Latin American Cocaine Trade Persists Despite Gains Made by U.S. Efforts

Jun 15, 2011

Efforts by the United States to combat Latin American cocaine smugglers have disrupted drug supplies and captured key cartel leaders, but they have not significantly reduced the region's overall narcotics trade.

Latin American Cocaine Trade Persists Despite Gains Made by U.S. Efforts

Jun 15, 2011

Addiction Research Centres and the Nurturing of Creativity: RAND's Drug Policy Research Center

Feb 6, 2011

This paper provides a look back at the creation, evolution and growth of the RAND Drug Policy Research Center (DPRC).

Changes in Diarrheal Disease and Treatment Among Brazilian Children from 1986 to 1996

Jan 31, 2011

This paper examines changes in diarrhea prevalence and treatment in Brazil between 1986 and 1996 and concludes that policies to prevent the disease should be targeted at disadvantaged socioeconomic groups.

Do Colleges Cultivate Critical Thinking, Problem Solving, Writing and Interpersonal Skills?

Dec 31, 2010

We investigate how much value college enrollment adds to students' critical thinking, problem-solving and communication skills, and the role college inputs play in developing these competencies, using data from a 2009 collegiate assessment pilot study in Colombia.

Coverage of Fully-Funded Social Security Programs in Chile, Colombia and Mexico

Sep 15, 2010

Chile, Colombia, and Mexico each have fully-funded, defined-contribution social security systems, yet there are significant differences in system design and incentive that may affect individuals' participation. The research team compared the differences of individual coverage in the three countries' systems.

Are Educational Vouchers Only Redistributive?

Aug 1, 2010

It is unclear if vouchers increase educational productivity or are purely redistributive, benefiting recipients by giving them access to more desirable peers at others' expense. To examine this, the authors study an educational voucher programme in Colombia which allocated vouchers by lottery.

Theory and Method at the Intersection of Anthropology and Cultural Neuroscience

Dec 31, 2009

Exploring the intersection of neuroscience and anthropology can productively inform our understanding of the relationship between human brains and their socio-cultural contexts.

Height, Education and Later-Life Cognition in Latin America and the Caribbean

Dec 31, 2009

This study investigates the relationship between anthropometric markers (height and knee height), early-life conditions, education, and cognitive function in later life among urban elderly from Latin America and the Caribbean.

Prime Numbers: Doped

Oct 19, 2009

The illicit drug trade is the ultimate value-added chain. As cocaine and heroin make their perilous journeys from the fields of Colombia and Afghanistan to markets in U.S. and European cities, each border crossed and each trafficker involved adds dollars to a price, write Beau Kilmer And Peter Reuter.

BRIC-à-Brac

Jun 15, 2009

The leaders of the BRIC countries—Brazil, Russia, India, and China—hold their first stand-alone summit in Yekaterinburg, Russia, on Tuesday, June 16. The timing of the BRIC summit, just a few weeks before U.S. President Barack Obama's arrival in Moscow and the G-8 meeting in L'Aquila, Italy, is hardly accidental, writes Andrew S. Weiss.

Assessing Mexico's Narco-Violence

May 13, 2009

Drug-related violence in Mexico has more than doubled over the past 18 months, with a sharp increase in crimes that can only be understood as atrocities. The executions, assassinations, and decapitations may all seem wanton and senseless. But this violence actually has a purpose, write Benjamin Bahney and Agnes Gereben Schaefer.

Economic Costs of Major Oil Supply Disruption Pose Risk to U.S. National Security

May 10, 2009

While on a net basis the United States imports nearly 60 percent of the oil it consumes, this reliance on imported oil is not by itself a major national security threat. The study finds that the economic costs of a major disruption in global oil supplies—including higher prices for American consumers—pose the greatest risk to the United States.

Estimating the size of the global drug market: A demand-side approach: Report 2

Apr 21, 2009

The report generates country-level consumption and retail expenditure estimates for cannabis, heroin, cocaine, and amphetamine-type substances.

Organized Crime Is Increasingly Active in Film Piracy; Three Cases Link Terrorists to Piracy Profits

Mar 2, 2009

Organized crime increasingly is involved in the piracy of feature films, with syndicates active along the entire supply chain from manufacture to street sales. While crime syndicates have added piracy to their criminal portfolios, the profits from film piracy also have been used on occasion to support the activities of terrorist groups.