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
The best way to cut gun violence, and it’s almost free
In an op-ed for Crain’s Chicago Business, Crime Lab Pritzker Director Jens Ludwig highlights the importance of using data-informed practices to improve public safety and shares key insights from behavioral economics that provide a playbook for addressing gun violence that is both effective and low-cost.
Research on cognitive behavioral therapy for at-risk youth
Dr. Nour Abdul-Razzak joins host Jennifer Doleac on the Probable Causation podcast to discuss the Choose to Change program—an intervention that integrates trauma-informed therapy with comprehensive support to reduce youth violence and improve educational outcomes.
Deaths of decision-making are killing American teens. Schools can fix it.
Crime Lab executive director Katie Hill pens an op-ed for Brookings about how cognitive behavioral programs can teach teens decision-making skills that can dramatically reduce violence and save lives – often at little or no additional cost.
