Mental Health in the Developing World: Using Positive Psychology to Improve Psychological Well-being

Last registered on February 14, 2015

Pre-Trial

Trial Information

General Information

Title
Mental Health in the Developing World: Using Positive Psychology to Improve Psychological Well-being
RCT ID
AEARCTR-0000627
Initial registration date
February 14, 2015

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
February 14, 2015, 10:48 AM EST

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

Locations

Region

Primary Investigator

Affiliation
Stockholm University

Other Primary Investigator(s)

PI Affiliation
Princeton University
PI Affiliation
Princeton University
PI Affiliation
The University of Melbourne

Additional Trial Information

Status
Completed
Start date
2014-11-01
End date
2014-12-31
Secondary IDs
Abstract
We conduct a randomized experiment to evaluate a light-touch psychological intervention in a developing-country setting. Numerous psychological studies suggest that simple, light-touch interventions are effective in improving psychological well-being, particularly in sub-clinical populations. However, little is known about the effectiveness of such interventions in developing-country populations. These populations are of particular interest because poor mental health is thought to be a barrier to development. Residents of an informal settlement in Kenya were randomly assigned to either a control condition, or an experimental condition in which they participated in a combination of psychological exercises aimed at improving psychological well-being over the course of two weeks. The psychological interventions consisted of a "Count Your Blessings" exercise encouraging participants to recall three good things about their life every day, a "self-affirmation" exercise in which participants wrote about their talents, and an "aspirations" exercise in which they were encouraged to think about their life goals. This document outlines the outcome variables and econometric methods we will use to assess the effect of the intervention on psychological well-being, aspirations, cognitive control, and decision-making.
External Link(s)

Registration Citation

Citation
Baranov, Victoria et al. 2015. "Mental Health in the Developing World: Using Positive Psychology to Improve Psychological Well-being." AEA RCT Registry. February 14. https://doi.org/10.1257/rct.627-1.0
Former Citation
Baranov, Victoria et al. 2015. "Mental Health in the Developing World: Using Positive Psychology to Improve Psychological Well-being." AEA RCT Registry. February 14. https://www.socialscienceregistry.org/trials/627/history/3608
Experimental Details

Interventions

Intervention(s)
See pre-analysis plan
Intervention (Hidden)
See pre-analysis plan
Intervention Start Date
2014-11-01
Intervention End Date
2014-12-31

Primary Outcomes

Primary Outcomes (end points)
See pre-analysis plan
Primary Outcomes (explanation)
See pre-analysis plan

Secondary Outcomes

Secondary Outcomes (end points)
Secondary Outcomes (explanation)

Experimental Design

Experimental Design
See pre-analysis plan
Experimental Design Details
See pre-analysis plan
Randomization Method
See pre-analysis plan
Randomization Unit
See pre-analysis plan
Was the treatment clustered?
No

Experiment Characteristics

Sample size: planned number of clusters
See pre-analysis plan
Sample size: planned number of observations
See pre-analysis plan
Sample size (or number of clusters) by treatment arms
See pre-analysis plan
Minimum detectable effect size for main outcomes (accounting for sample design and clustering)
See pre-analysis plan
IRB

Institutional Review Boards (IRBs)

IRB Name
Princeton University
IRB Approval Date
2014-10-20
IRB Approval Number
6800
Analysis Plan

Analysis Plan Documents

Pre-analysis plan

MD5: c7920a3b7cfb2f2d24a240c03c0f85b8

SHA1: 81e62ca2da981b5abce72f7c24cd610ea9859232

Uploaded At: February 14, 2015

Post-Trial

Post Trial Information

Study Withdrawal

There is information in this trial unavailable to the public. Use the button below to request access.

Request Information

Intervention

Is the intervention completed?
No
Data Collection Complete
Data Publication

Data Publication

Is public data available?
No

Program Files

Program Files
Reports, Papers & Other Materials

Relevant Paper(s)

Reports & Other Materials