AEA RC T Registr y

The American Economic Association's registry for randomized controlled trials

The study will investigate the impact of an integrated service delivery approach for nutrition under the Indian Integrated Child Development Services (ICDS) program on the cognitive capacity of children prior to pre-school entry. This approach introduces an additional trained worker at the single point of ICDS service in the community, the Anganwadi Centre (AWC). The main task of this additional worker is to enhance parental care by including child stimulation along with a package of recommendations regarding health care and child feeding. Priority outcomes assessed include both nutritional status and cognitive development of children 24-48 months old. The study area comprises two purposively selected districts located in the state of Madhya Pradesh. These districts, Dhar and Singrauli, are predominantly rural with a high proportion of scheduled caste/scheduled tribe populations. Program impacts will be estimated through a randomized cluster trial, with randomization at the level of the village (the median village contains exactly one AWC). Randomization is stratified by district and administrative data suggests a balanced sample with respect to administrative measures of under-nutrition. A total of 50 villages will be initially offered the additional AWC worker, and 50 alternative villages will serve as the observational control. Data collection includes not only the priority child outcomes but also socio-demographic and economic information at the household level, as well as relevant characteristics of the AWC and the community. The exposure period is planned for two years after baseline data collection in order to ensure that improvements in cumulative outcomes measures will not be assessed too early.