Randomized Controlled Trials
Randomized controlled trials are the gold standard in research, producing causal evidence about the efficacy and impact of policies and programs.
A randomized controlled trial, or RCT, is considered the gold standard in research. A RCT is a rigorous study that randomly assigns participants to either a “treatment group” who are offered the intervention, or a “control group” who have access to all other services except for the intervention. By measuring what would have happened to the treatment group without the intervention, an RCT lets researchers isolate the effect of the intervention itself.
The Crime Lab uses RCTs as our preferred method of project evaluation wherever possible. While RCTs can be time and resource intensive, they generate high-quality results to ensure that our partners and policymakers can make informed decisions about how to best support communities affected by gun violence.
Latest Updates
Curbing gun violence in Chicago doesn’t require that we first end poverty
Crime Lab leaders Katie Hill and Jens Ludwig penned an op-ed in the Chicago Tribune highlighting the root causes of gun violence and the growing body of research showing that increased neighborhood vibrancy generates surprisingly large changes in the prevalence of gun violence, by as much as 30%.
A fighting chance
In The University of Chicago Magazine’s Fall ’25 issue, Susie Allen profiles Crime Lab Pritzker Director Jens Ludwig to discuss his book, “Unforgiving Places,” which challenges conventional wisdom on gun violence and suggests new approaches to solving the problem.
Researchers: Violence intervention and policing should complement, not compete against, each other
The Crime Lab’s Executive Director Katie Hill and Pritzker Director Jens Ludwig discuss evidence-based solutions to crime, including violence intervention and data-driven policing, in an op-ed for the Chicago Tribune.