Impact of Behavioural Interventions on Complementary Feeding Practices by Caregivers

Last registered on June 11, 2025
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Pre-Trial

Trial Information

General Information

Title
Impact of Behavioural Interventions on Complementary Feeding Practices by Caregivers
RCT ID
AEARCTR-0016076
Initial registration date
June 02, 2025

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
June 11, 2025, 6:29 AM EDT

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

Locations

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Primary Investigator

Name
Shagata Mukherjee
Affiliation
CSBC, Ashoka University
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Other Primary Investigator(s)

PI Name
Dinabandhu Mondal
PI Affiliation
CSBC, Ashoka University
Contact Investigator

Additional Trial Information

Status
In development
Start date
2025-06-05
End date
2026-12-31
Keywords
Behavior, Health, Post-conflict
Additional Keywords
Nutrition, Complementary Feeding, Children
JEL code(s)
I12, I15, J13
Secondary IDs
Prior work
This trial does not extend or rely on any prior RCTs.
Abstract
Malnutrition among children is a public health concern in India. According to a recent report by the National Family Health Survey (NFHS, 2019-21), 36% of children in India are stunted, 19% are wasted, and 32% are underweight. The condition in the state of Bihar is even worse, as it continues to struggle with high rates of malnutrition among children. Studies suggest that inappropriate complementary feeding practices significantly contribute to undernutrition among children under 2 years of age. However, there are wide disparities in complementary feeding practices among children across the states in India. Poor dietary diversity and inadequate complementary feeding practices have a long-term impact on the growth, cognitive development, and overall health of the child. Despite India having taken various steps, such as the implementation of the Integrated Child Development Scheme (ICDS) and Anganwadi Services Centres (AWCs), to improve the nutritional status of children, the appropriate practices of complementary feeding still remain low. In this backdrop, this study aims to conduct a randomised control experiment (RCT) by providing complementary feeding kits consisting of evidence-based and behaviourally-informed IVR interventions to mothers with children of 6-23 months in the state of Bihar, India.
External Link(s)

Registration Citation

Citation
Mondal, Dinabandhu and Shagata Mukherjee. 2025. "Impact of Behavioural Interventions on Complementary Feeding Practices by Caregivers ." AEA RCT Registry. June 11. https://doi.org/10.1257/rct.16076-1.0
Sponsors & Partners
Experimental Details

Interventions

Intervention(s)
We will provide mothers with children aged 6-23 months with complementary feeding kits. In addition, we will also provide IVR-based interventions.
Intervention Start Date
2025-06-06
Intervention End Date
2025-11-30

Primary Outcomes

Primary Outcomes (end points)
The primary outcomes include minimum dietary diversity, minimum meal frequency, minimum acceptable diet, and complementary feeding attitude index.
Primary Outcomes (explanation)
These indicators will be assessed based on survey-based questions related to consumption of diversified food and number of meals.

Secondary Outcomes

Secondary Outcomes (end points)
The secondary outcomes are stunting, wasting, and underweight
Secondary Outcomes (explanation)
These anthropometric measures will be estimated by comparing a child's measurements to reference standards. Stunting will be estimated by height-for-age, wasting by weight-for-height, and underweight by weight-for-age.

Experimental Design

Experimental Design
This experiment is multi-arm clustered randomized trial with participants randomly assigned to three groups: a) control group, b) treatment group-1, and c) treatment group-2. The clusters are Anganwadi centres (AWCs) in the state of Bihar, India. The treatment assignment process will be based on randomized lotteries, ensuring that the assignment of AWCs to treatment or control groups is transparent and free from any potential bias.
Experimental Design Details
Not available
Randomization Method
Randomization will be done by a computer system.
Randomization Unit
The unit of randomization will be at the Anganwadi centre level.
Was the treatment clustered?
Yes

Experiment Characteristics

Sample size: planned number of clusters
300 clusters
Sample size: planned number of observations
1800 samples
Sample size (or number of clusters) by treatment arms
600 samples from each treatment arm
Minimum detectable effect size for main outcomes (accounting for sample design and clustering)
Supporting Documents and Materials
IRB

Institutional Review Boards (IRBs)

IRB Name
Ashoka University Institutional Review Board
IRB Approval Date
2025-06-02
IRB Approval Number
25-E-10006-Mondal
Analysis Plan