LGBTQ Rights in India

Last registered on October 31, 2024

View Trial History

Pre-Trial

Trial Information

General Information

Title

LGBTQ Rights in India

RCT ID

AEARCTR-0010953

Initial registration date

March 06, 2023

Initial registration date is when the trial was registered.

It corresponds to when the registration was submitted to the Registry to be reviewed for publication.

First published

March 13, 2023, 8:48 AM EDT

First published corresponds to when the trial was first made public on the Registry after being reviewed.

Last updated

October 31, 2024, 4:46 PM EDT

Last updated is the most recent time when changes to the trial's registration were published.

Locations

Country

India

Region

Tamil Nadu

Primary Investigator

Name

Duncan Webb

Affiliation

Paris School of Economics

Contact Primary Investigator

Other Primary Investigator(s)

Additional Trial Information

Status

Completed

Start date

2023-03-06

End date

2023-08-31

Keywords

Behavior, Crime, Violence, & Conflict, Gender, Labor

Additional Keywords

Discrimination

JEL code(s)

Secondary IDs

Prior work

This trial does not extend or rely on any prior RCTs.

Abstract

The norms that underpin societal prejudice can be highly persistent, but using the law to grant rights to minority groups may generate changes in whether people think discrimination is socially acceptable. In this project, I will test whether the expansion of legal rights for a stigmatized minority - transgender persons in India - has an effect on discrimination in a real-stakes hiring choice. I will measure whether telling people about the expanding legal status of transgenders can improve their attitudes directly, and will also examine whether such an intervention can generate positive social spillovers: do people talk more positively about transgenders in a group discussion after hearing about transgender rights, and can this persuade others in their group to subsequently discriminate less?

External Link(s)

Registration Citation

Citation

Webb, Duncan. 2024. "LGBTQ Rights in India." AEA RCT Registry. October 31. https://doi.org/10.1257/rct.10953-2.1

Sponsors & Partners

Experimental Details

Interventions

Intervention(s)

Intervention (Hidden)

Intervention Start Date

2023-03-06

Intervention End Date

2023-08-31

Primary Outcomes

Primary Outcomes (end points)

Anti-transgender discrimination

Primary Outcomes (explanation)

See pre-analysis plan for more detail

Secondary Outcomes

Secondary Outcomes (end points)

Follow-up discrimination
Attitudes
Norms
Beliefs

Secondary Outcomes (explanation)

See pre-analysis plan for more detail

Experimental Design

There are two main treatment variations.

First, at the start of the main survey, participants are shown one of three different videos:
1. Control video - gives no information about transgender rights, and includes placebo information about voting rights in India
2. Messaging video - the participant is shown persuasive messaging, arguing that transgenders in India should have fundamental rights
3. Law video - the participant is shown a video that tells them that transgender people actually do have legal rights in India because of a Supreme Court ruling in 2014

In addition, participants are cross-randomised into one of two conditions:
1. Discussion - respondents take part in a discussion among a group of 3 neighbours, in which they discuss their preferred worker and make a collective hiring choice
2. No discussion - respondents do not take part in a discussion.

See pre-analysis plan for further details on the experimental design.

In phase 2 of the experiment, two additional treatment arms will be added:
1. Pairwise discussion - 2 respondents in a group take part in a discussion, and the 3rd respondent listens
2. Public choices - respondents choose while knowing that their responses will be made public to the others in their group

Experimental Design Details

Randomization Method

Randomization using an R script.

Randomization Unit

Randomization is at the level of groups of 3 neighbours

Was the treatment clustered?

Yes

Experiment Characteristics

Sample size: planned number of clusters

Approximately 1133 groups of 3 respondents

Sample size: planned number of observations

Approximately 3400 respondents

Sample size (or number of clusters) by treatment arms

N = 300 for each of the following arms:

In total:
1. No discussion: N = 1300
2. Discussion: N = 900
3. Public choices: N = 600
4. Pairwise discussion: N = 600

Each will be cross-randomised with the information treatment, so that:
1. Control video: N = 1133
2. Messaging video: N = 1133
3. Law video: N = 1133

Minimum detectable effect size for main outcomes (accounting for sample design and clustering)

Main comparison between 6 treatment groups: Each participant states their preferences over 6 pairs of delivery options. 2 of these pairs includes 1 transgender delivery worker. Based on simulations from pilot data from 120 individuals, this yields an MDE of 15 percentage points (0.3SD) on pairwise comparisons between the 6 treatment arms (assuming 𝛼 = 5%, power = 80%). Comparison of No discussion with Discussion. Similar simulations imply an MDE of 7.5 percentage points (0.15SD).

Supporting Documents and Materials

IRB