This study will test the effectiveness of a phone-based big sister/big brother program designed to provide health information and support, reduce school dropouts, and promote safer relationships. The program's goal is to create a phone-based safe space, to ensure adolescents remained connected with access to support and health information during COVID lockdowns.
Study Type
INTERVENTIONAL
Allocation
RANDOMIZED
Purpose
PREVENTION
Masking
SINGLE
Enrollment
2,000
Weekly health-related SMS messages are provided to adolescents.
Weekly health-related phone calls plus SMS messages are provided to adolescents.
Young 1ove
Gaborone, Botswana
RECRUITINGShare of students that have been or are pregnant and/or have dropped out of school
These two outcomes (using school administrative data on whether students have dropped out of school and were pregnant) will be combined into a composite variable equal to 1 if the student has become pregnant and/or has dropped out of school.
Time frame: ~6 months post-program
Share of students with the accurate belief that older partners have the highest risk of HIV compared to younger partners.
Indicator variable from the survey question wording: "Who do you think has the highest risk of infecting you with HIV?"
Time frame: ~4 weeks post program
Share of students reporting that they make the final decision in their life about visiting a Sexual and reproductive health clinic
Indicator variable from the survey question response
Time frame: ~4 weeks post program
Share of students reporting that if they or their partner were pregnant, they would tell the data collector
Indicator variable coded 1 if student answered likely or very likely to 'If you were pregnant, how likely would you be to tell me?'
Time frame: ~4 weeks post program
This platform is for informational purposes only and does not constitute medical advice. Always consult a qualified healthcare professional.