Ongoing projects

Mente Amiga

  • Title: Mente Amiga
  • Aim: The project is a randomized controlled trial (RCT) evaluating the impact of Mente Amiga ("Kind Mind"), a school-based mental health programme implemented by Fundacion Consciente in Eastern El Salvador. Mente Amiga targets primary school students aged 9 to 12 and is delivered in public schools across the departments of La Unión, Morazán, San Miguel, and Usulután. The programme is tested in two delivery formats: one led by trained school psychologists and one led by trained classroom teachers. The primary objective of the evaluation is to assess whether, and to what extent, the Mente Amiga programme improves students' emotional and behavioral regulation, academic outcomes, and the broader classroom environment. The secondary objective is to compare the cost-effectiveness of the two delivery models, with a view to identifying scalable and financially sustainable approaches for the Salvadoran education system.
  • Methods: Randomized controlled trial (RCT)
  • Team: Dr. Martina Jakob (Uni Bern, Uni Zurich), Dr. Fanny Valli-Puljic (Uni Konstanz), PhD Miriam Prater (Uni Bern)
  • Duration: January 2027-October 2028 (this is the intervention period; the preparation is already ongoing, and data analysis after the intervention will go into 2029)
  • Funders & Amount: Funds for Innovation in Development (~ 800'000 EUR) + Medicor (~ 80'000 EUR)
  • Publications: TBA

 

Work related gender norms

  • Full title: Work-related gender norms in the Netherlands. Measuring the normative underpinnings of female labor force participation, in particular parttime work.
  • Aim: To investigate the potential impact of work-related gender norms on female labor force participation in the Netherlands, in particular parttime work.
  • Methods: Representative surveys, survey experiments, analysis of Dutch register data.
  • Team: A. Brüning, W. Przepiorka (Co-PI), T. Spiegel, T. van der Lippe
  • Duration: 2023 - 2027
  • Funder: Netherlands Organisation for Scientific Research (NWO). Amount: ~ EUR 250,000. [Note: this project is financed through the Stevin prize awarded to T. van der Lippe]
  • Publications: TBA

Efficient refugee integration through data analytics

  • Full title: Efficient refugee integration through data analytics.
  • Aim: To evaluate the viability of conversational AI in helping refugees in Switzerland finding their way through daily life, in particular regarding legal questions. Methods: Online surveys, text analysis.
  • Team: R. Farys, I. Gartman, A. Kuznetsova, W. Przepiorka (Co-PI), V. Yefimov
  • Duration: 2026 - 2027
  • Funder: Innosuisse (Swiss Innovation Agency). Amount: CHF 15,000.
  • Publications: TBA

Transitions from Education to Employment (TREE)

  • Titel: Transitionen from Education to Employment (TREE)
  • Aim: TREE is a nationwide, longitudinal survey on the transition of young people from school to adult life.
  • Methods: Prospective longitudinal survey based on random samples, combining telephone interviews (CATI) and written survey instruments (CASI, paper-and-pencil)
  • Team: Claudia Finger (Ko-Leitung), Sandra Hupka-Brunner (Ko-Leitung), Marc Dojtschinov, Andrés Gomensoro, Cédric Grützner, Stefan Ilic, Ben Jann, Maarten Koomen, Barbara Müller, Nathina Rajendran, Kathrin Thomas
  • Duration: since 2000
  • Funder: Swiss National Science Foundation (SNF) 
  • Link: https://www.tree.unibe.ch/