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Latin American Social Policy

RAND's research on social policy in Latin America is dedicated to improving the well-being of the Latin American population and conducts objective, independent research on topics relevant to Latin Americans living and working at home and in the United States.

Featured Research

Great-Power Competition Outside the Indo-Pacific and Europe
The United States, China, and Russia are competing for influence in secondary theaters like Latin America, Africa, and the Middle East. Where and why could competition turn into conflict, and what form might that conflict take?
Apr 25, 2023
Raphael S. Cohen, Elina Treyger, et al.
China's Role in the Global Development of Critical Resources
China's extensive foreign investments in energy infrastructure and critical minerals have raised concerns. Case studies in coal power, electricity transmission, and seabed mining examine China's behaviors and suggest ways to build capacity among host nations to minimize the potential effects of an overreliance on China.
Nov 7, 2022
Tom LaTourrette, Todd C. Helmus @Helmus, et al.
What Policy Changes Could Help Save Lives from Illicit Synthetic Opioids Overdose?
In this recording of a July 2022 virtual event, experts discuss findings from the final report by the Commission on Combating Synthetic Opioid Trafficking, and recommendations to reduce the number of lives lost to illicit synthetic opioids.
Aug 18, 2022
Karen Tandy, David Trone, et al.

Publications

Racial Disparities in Criminal Sentencing Vary Considerably Across Federal Judges 2023

Nicholas Goldrosen, Christian Michael Smith, Maria-Veronica Ciocanel, Rebecca Santorella, Shilad Sen, Shawn D. Bushway, Chad M. Topaz
Substantial race-based disparities exist in federal criminal sentencing. We analyze 380,000 recent (2006–2019) sentences in the JUSTFAIR database and show that these disparities are large and vary considerably across judges.
Biliteracy Seals in a Large Urban District in New Mexico: Who Earns Them and How Do They Impact College Outcomes? 2023

Kata Mihaly, Brenda Arellano, Shannon Prier
This study examined the college readiness of students who earned different types of seals, the number of students who met some requirements for a seal but did not earn one, and the effect of earning a seal on college outcomes.
Modifying Text Messages from a Faith-Based Physical Activity Intervention with Latino Adults in Response to the COVID-19 Pandemic 2023

Margaret D. Whitley, Lilian Perez, Gabriela Castro, Anne Larson, Kathryn Pitkin Derose
The purpose of this article is to describe how we developed and implemented a physical activity text messaging component within a faith-based intervention.
Patient Experience for Hispanic Older Adults Varies by Language Preference 2022

Robert Weech-Maldonado, Amelia Haviland, Katrin Hambarsoomian, Steven C. Martino, Jacob W. Dembosky, Loida Tamayo, Sarah J. Gaillot, Marc N. Elliott
Regardless of language preference, Hispanic people with Medicare experience disparities in patient care relative to non-Hispanic White English-preferring counterparts.

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