Featured Pardee RAND Research

Pardee RAND students and faculty — and even some alumni — contribute to RAND research. This page features selected reports and projects to which the Pardee RAND community has contributed.

Despite Its Challenges, Remote Learning Is Here to Stay
Dec 15, 2020

School district leaders are concerned about students' unequal opportunities to learn during the pandemic, students' social and emotional learning needs, and insufficient funding to cover staff, according to Melissa Diliberti (cohort '19) and her coauthors. Still, about two in ten leaders still anticipate that a fully remote learning option will become a permanent public school offering.
Preparing Children for Civic Life in the Era of Truth Decay
Dec 8, 2020

To restore the role of facts in public life, it's important for America's youth to develop strong civic skills. Lynn Hu (cohort '19) and colleagues find that students can build these skills in the classroom, but teachers need better resources and more support to help them do it.
The Benefits and Costs of Decarbonizing Costa Rica's Economy
Nov 24, 2020

Costa Rica set the ambitious goal of becoming carbon-neutral by 2050. Alumni David Groves and Edmundo Molina-Perez, with students James Syme and Carlos Calvo Hernandez, evaluated the benefits and costs of its National Decarbonization Plan and found that under most plausible assumptions about the future, the plan would achieve or nearly achieve its goals and do so at a net economic benefit.
This School Year Could Be Another Casualty of the Pandemic
Nov 16, 2020

Most U.S. schools are providing either fully remote or hybrid instruction as the pandemic continues to limit students' learning. Melissa Diliberti (cohort '19) finds that students are less prepared for grade-level work and those from vulnerable populations are most at risk of falling behind. Some 80 percent of teachers report burnout.
How Can Green Infrastructure Help to Manage Rainfall in an Urban Watershed?
Oct 29, 2020

Cities across the United States are struggling to effectively manage stormwater. A study by Jordan Fischbach (cohort '04) and David Catt ('16) shows how the challenges of increasing volumes of stormwater in a complex urban environment can be addressed by a mix of solutions.
When Can Automated Vehicles Be Considered Safe Enough?
Oct 29, 2020

Establishing whether automated vehicles are acceptably safe is not straightforward, and continual technology development adds complication. Luke Irwin (cohort '16) helped to analyze the best approaches to assess AV safety and improve communication about safety, both of which are important for building and sustaining public trust.
Managing Heavy Rainfall with Green Infrastructure
Oct 26, 2020

Alum Jordan Fischbach (cohort '04), student David Catt ('16) and colleagues evaluated Pittsburgh's Negley Run watershed to explore how eco-friendly stormwater infrastructure could reduce flooding and provide positive economic benefits in areas that face urgent flood risk.
How Russia Targets U.S. Elections
Oct 1, 2020

In this campaign season, Russia might try to manipulate U.S. voters through social media as it did in 2016, and new technologies have made these efforts easier. Russia's tactics aim to polarize Americans, create distrust, and paralyze the political process. Student Hilary Reininger ('16) and colleagues ask, what is the best defense against them?
Schools Weren't Prepared for a Crisis Like COVID-19
Sep 29, 2020

Before COVID-19, less than half of U.S. public schools had a written plan for dealing with a pandemic and only 38 states had publicly available school health emergency plans, according to research by Melissa Diliberti (cohort '19) and RAND colleagues. How did schools' preparation affect their transitions to remote learning and principals' confidence in student achievement?
The Digital Divide and COVID-19
Sep 24, 2020

Findings from a survey of U.S. teachers reveal how limited home internet access has been a barrier to providing instruction amid pandemic-related school closures. Student Melissa Diliberti (cohort '19) and colleagues find the problem is particularly acute among high-poverty schools.
Hedgemony: A Game of Strategic Choices
Sep 22, 2020

Alum Yuna Wong (cohort '00) helped to develop this tabletop military strategy game in which players represent the United States, its allies, and its key competitors. They must use “hedging” strategies and decide how to best manage their resources and forces.
Evaluating Alternative Maintenance Manpower Force Structure Concepts for the F-35A
Sep 3, 2020

The U.S. Air Force has a goal of reducing the life cycle operating and support costs of the F-35A. What are the potential impacts of F-35A AFS consolidation on maintenance manpower requirements, costs, and readiness?
Why Do Some Medical Practices Pursue Medical Home Recognition?
Aug 3, 2020

Financial incentives, being in a statewide effort, and improving care or experiences were the most common reasons practice leaders decided to obtain and maintain patient-centered medical home recognition.
COVID-19 Mobile Surveillance Tools Raise Privacy Concerns
Jul 30, 2020

Mobile phone tools and data sources for COVID-19 tracking are beneficial, but they also have the potential for harm, according to research by students Hardika Dayalani (cohort '18) and Katie Feistel ('19). As public health agencies consider using mobile surveillance tools, they will need to address privacy concerns.
Opportunities for Including the Information Environment in U.S. Marine Corps Wargames
Jul 1, 2020

Wargaming is enjoying renewed prominence in the defense community, yet the information environment remains underdeveloped and underrepresented in wargames.
Assessing Health Services and Primary Care Research
Jun 30, 2020

RAND reviewed federally-funded health services and primary care research, making recommendations for maximizing outcomes and future investments to better serve the needs of a complex and rapidly changing U.S. health care system.
Understanding Media Use and Literacy in Schools
Jun 29, 2020

Schools can play a key role in fighting Truth Decay—the diminishing role of facts in U.S. public life—by teaching media literacy to students. Student Lynn Hu (cohort 19) and colleagues examine how much emphasis teachers and schools put on this subject.
How Are Educators Teaching and Leading Through the Pandemic?
Jun 22, 2020

U.S. teachers and principals shifted quickly to support students with distance learning during the early weeks of the coronavirus crisis. Unfortunately, according to research by student Melissa Diliberti (cohort '19) and colleagues, the pandemic is likely to make existing inequalities worse.
Health Care Resource Allocation Decisionmaking During a Pandemic
Jun 18, 2020

Student Karishma Patel (cohort '17) and colleagues developed a Core Guidance Checklist that can help health systems and policymakers make choices about how to allocate scarce but lifesaving resources—for patients and for health care workers—during the COVID-19 crisis.
How Are Americans Paying Their Bills During the Pandemic?
Jun 3, 2020

About one-third of U.S. households have experienced a decline in income as a result of COVID-19. Professors Katherine Carman and Shanthi Nataraj find that roughly 30 percent of these households—especially low-income, black, or Hispanic households—are having difficulties paying their bills.
Alum: How Would a Public Option on Health Insurance Affect Costs and Coverage?
May 28, 2020

Interest in a government-sponsored health insurance plan with publicly determined provider rates is growing. An analysis by Jodi Liu (cohort '12) and RAND colleagues looked at four such "public option" plans and found that lower provider payment rates would lower premiums. But the impact on enrollees would also depend on tax credits, and changes to the number of uninsured would be small.
Student Examines How Small Businesses Are Surviving the COVID-19 Pandemic
May 22, 2020

Small-business owners are facing many challenges as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic. Diana Gehlhaus (cohort '15) helped research what kinds of policies might help them and what will they need to thrive once the immediate public health crisis has passed.
Student Helps to Demystify the Belt and Road Initiative
May 13, 2020

China's Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) aims to connect its partner countries domestically and globally. Though the project appears to address a critical shortage of infrastructure in developing countries, it has been widely criticized. Keren Zhu (cohort '17) and colleagues explore what is at the heart of these critiques.
Student Examines How to Track and Disrupt the Looted Antiquities Trade
May 12, 2020

The sale of stolen cultural property provides an important funding source for terrorist organizations and rogue states. Bilyana Lilly (cohort '16) helped to compile new evidence from numerous open sources that shows how the illicit antiquities market operates and ways law enforcement might be able to disrupt it.
Alum and Prof Evaluate 24/7 Sobriety Program at Individual Level
May 7, 2020

24/7 Sobriety combines frequent alcohol testing with swift, certain, and modest sanctions for those who test positive for alcohol or miss a test. Alum Greg Midgette and Prof. Beau Kilmer used an instrumental variables approach for this study and found 24/7 reduced the probability a participant was rearrested or had probation revoked at 12 months by 49%.