Helping Lawmakers Cut Through the Data Clutter.

• Author: Goodwin, Kristine

After an unprecedented spike in suicide rates in Minnesota, the state health department asked lawmakers in 2019 to fund a comprehensive suicide prevention program with telephone crisis lines and grants and training for local initiatives. Agency officials backed up their spending request with evidence showing that crisis lines had improved mental health and reduced rates of suicide elsewhere.

To build their case, the officials turned to the Results First Clearinghouse Database, a research tool created by The Pew Charitable Trusts. The database showed that rigorous research supported the effectiveness of crisis lines, earning them the clearinghouse's second-highest evidence rating.

Legislators and legislative staff often turn to clearinghouses, or directories, to understand the research behind programs and policies. That can be time consuming given that there are some 20 publicly accessible clearinghouses, according to the Corporation for National and Community Service. The Results First database cuts the time significantly by synthesizing research from nine national clearinghouses.

Results First assigns each policy program in its database a color based on the ratings it received from the nine clearinghouses. Researchers quickly can see if a program is broadly viewed as effective, ineffective or, in some cases, detrimental.

The database currently has information on more than 3,000 programs across various policy areas, including employment and job training, crime and delinquency, child and family well-being, and mental and public health. With information evaluated and gathered in one...