scholarly journals The impact of cash transfers on subjective well-being and mental health in low- and middle- income countries: A systematic review and meta-analysis

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Joel McGuire ◽  
Caspar Kaiser ◽  
Anders Bach-Mortensen
Keyword(s):  
Mental Health ◽  
Meta Analysis ◽  
Well Being ◽  
Spillover Effects ◽  
Cash Transfers ◽  
Subjective Well Being ◽  
Average Effect ◽  
Middle Income ◽  
Middle Income Countries ◽  
The Impact

Background: A large body of evidence evaluates the impact of cash transfers (CTs) on physical health and economic indicators. A growing amount of research on CTs contains measures of subjective well- being (SWB) and mental health (MH) but no attempt has been made to systematically synthesize this work.Methods/design: We undertook a systematic review and meta-analysis of RCTs and quasi- experimental studies, including peer-reviewed publications and grey literature (e.g. reports, pre-prints, and working papers), conducted over the period 2000-2020, examining the impact of CTs on self- reported SWB and MH outcomes.Results: Two authors (JM and CK) double-screened 1,147 records of potentially relevant studies, finding 38 studies suitable for inclusion in our meta-analysis, covering 100 outcomes and a total sample of n=114,274 individuals. The average effect size (Cohen’s d) of 38 CT studies on our composite outcome of MH and SWB is 0.10 standard deviations (SDs) (95% CI: 0.8, 0.13) for an average time until follow-up of two years. However, there is a substantial amount of heterogeneity in the estimated effects (I-squared = 64% and 95% Prediction interval: 0.0021, 0.215). CT value, both in absolute terms and relative to previous income, are significant predictors of the effect size. We find only weak evidence that the impact diminishes over time. Four randomized controlled trials in our sample were designed to identify the spillover effects of CTs on the SWB and MH outcomes of non-recipients. Two found negative spillovers but the average effect is not statistically significant and is close to zero.Discussion: Cash transfers significantly increase MH and SWB in low- and middle-income countries. More research on the long run (5+ years) effects is needed, as well as further analysis of the community and household spillover effects of cash transfers on MH and SWB outcomes. We encourage the inclusion of MH and SWB metrics in impact evaluations of interventions to enable the assessment of their relative cost-effectiveness at improving lives compared to cash transfers.

scholarly journals 407 - Living through the pandemic as an older person: Long-term psychological impacts in low- and middle-income countries

2021 ◽  
Vol 33 (S1) ◽  
pp. 33-33
Author(s):  
Clarissa Giebel ◽  
Bwire Ivan ◽  
Maria Isabel Zuluaga ◽  
Suresh Kumar ◽  
Mark Gabbay ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Mental Health ◽  
Older Adults ◽  
Well Being ◽  
Middle Income ◽  
Middle Income Countries ◽  
Health And Social Care ◽  
The Impact ◽  
Low And Middle Income

Background:The pandemic has put a huge strain on people’s mental health, with varying restrictions affecting people’s lives. Little is known how the pandemic affects older adults’ mental health, particularly those living in low- and middle-income countries (LMICs) where restrictions are affecting people’s access to basic necessities. Thus, the aim of this 3-country study was to understand the long- term impacts of the pandemic on the mental well-being of older adults with and without dementia in LMICs.Methods:We are collecting 30 baseline and 15 follow-up interviews with older adults (aged 60+), people with dementia, and family carers in Colombia, India, and Uganda, as well as a baseline and follow-up focus group with health and social are professionals in each country. Interviews are conducted remotely over the phone due to pandemic restrictions, with data collection taking place between March and July 2021. Transcripts are translated into English before being analysed using thematic analysis.Results:To date, we have completed close to 90 baseline interviews and 3 focus groups with health and social care professionals. Analysis is ongoing, but findings are capturing the detrimental second wave in India and follow-up interviews will capture the longitudinal impacts on mental health.Conclusions:Whilst vaccines are starting to be rolled out in LMICs, albeit at different rates, the virus will likely take much longer to be somewhat managed in LMICs. This leaves more room for people’s physical as well as mental health to be impacted by the restrictions, and with often limited mental health service coverage, it is all the more important o understand the impact of the pandemic on older people’s mental health.

scholarly journals The impact of COVID-19 pandemic on physical and mental health of Asians: A study of seven middle-income countries in Asia

PLoS ONE ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 16 (2) ◽  
pp. e0246824
Author(s):  
Cuiyan Wang ◽  
Michael Tee ◽  
Ashley Edward Roy ◽  
Mohammad A. Fardin ◽  
Wandee Srichokchatchawan ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Mental Health ◽  
Risk Factors ◽  
General Population ◽  
Well Being ◽  
Physical Symptoms ◽  
Physical And Mental Health ◽  
Middle Income ◽  
Event Scale ◽  
Middle Income Countries ◽  
The Impact

The coronavirus disease (COVID-19) pandemic has impacted the economy, livelihood, and physical and mental well-being of people worldwide. This study aimed to compare the mental health status during the pandemic in the general population of seven middle income countries (MICs) in Asia (China, Iran, Malaysia, Pakistan, Philippines, Thailand, and Vietnam). All the countries used the Impact of Event Scale–Revised (IES-R) and Depression, Anxiety and Stress Scale (DASS-21) to measure mental health. There were 4479 Asians completed the questionnaire with demographic characteristics, physical symptoms and health service utilization, contact history, knowledge and concern, precautionary measure, and rated their mental health with the IES-R and DASS-21. Descriptive statistics, One-Way analysis of variance (ANOVA), and linear regression were used to identify protective and risk factors associated with mental health parameters. There were significant differences in IES-R and DASS-21 scores between 7 MICs (p<0.05). Thailand had all the highest scores of IES-R, DASS-21 stress, anxiety, and depression scores whereas Vietnam had all the lowest scores. The risk factors for adverse mental health during the COVID-19 pandemic include age <30 years, high education background, single and separated status, discrimination by other countries and contact with people with COVID-19 (p<0.05). The protective factors for mental health include male gender, staying with children or more than 6 people in the same household, employment, confidence in doctors, high perceived likelihood of survival, and spending less time on health information (p<0.05). This comparative study among 7 MICs enhanced the understanding of metal health in the general population during the COVID-19 pandemic.

scholarly journals The Relationships among Anxiety, Subjective Well-Being, Media Consumption, and Safety-Seeking Behaviors during the COVID-19 Epidemic

2021 ◽  
Vol 18 (24) ◽  
pp. 13189
Author(s):  
Yi-Fang Luo ◽  
Heng-Yu Shen ◽  
Shu-Ching Yang ◽  
Liang-Ching Chen
Keyword(s):  
Public Health ◽  
Mental Health ◽  
New Media ◽  
Meta Analysis ◽  
Well Being ◽  
Atypical Pneumonia ◽  
Subjective Well Being ◽  
Related Information ◽  
Seeking Behavior ◽  
The Impact

The COVID-19 epidemic has been confirmed as the largest scale outbreak of atypical pneumonia since the outbreak of severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS) in 2003 and it has become a public health emergency of international concern. It exacerbated public confusion and anxiety, and the impact of COVID-19 on people needs to be better understood. Indeed, prior studies that conducted meta-analysis of longitudinal cohort research compared mental health before versus during the COVID-19 pandemic and proved that public health polices (e.g., city lockdowns, quarantines, avoiding gatherings, etc.) and COVID-19-related information that circulates on new media platforms directly affected citizen’s mental health and well-being. Hence, this research aims to explore Taiwanese people’s health status, anxiety, media sources for obtaining COVID-19 information, subjective well-being, and safety-seeking behavior during the COVID-19 epidemic and how they are associated. Online surveys were conducted through new media platforms, and 342 responses were included in the analysis. The research results indicate that the participants experienced different aspects of COVID-19 anxiety, including COVID-19 worry and perceived COVID-19 risk. Among the given media sources, the more participants searched for COVID-19 information on new media, the greater they worried about COVID-19. Furthermore, COVID-19 worry was positively related to safety-seeking behavior, while perceived COVID-19 risk was negatively related to subjective well-being. This paper concludes by offering some suggestions for future studies and pointing out limitations of the present study.

scholarly journals The impact of cash transfers on mental health in children and young people in low-income and middle-income countries: a systematic review and meta-analysis

2021 ◽  
Vol 6 (4) ◽  
pp. e004661
Author(s):  
Annie Zimmerman ◽  
Emily Garman ◽  
Mauricio Avendano-Pabon ◽  
Ricardo Araya ◽  
Sara Evans-Lacko ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Mental Health ◽  
Systematic Review ◽  
Depressive Symptoms ◽  
Young People ◽  
Low Income ◽  
Meta Analysis ◽  
Cash Transfers ◽  
Middle Income ◽  
Children And Young People ◽  
The Impact

IntroductionAlthough cash transfer programmes are not explicitly designed to improve mental health, by reducing poverty and improving the life chances of children and young people, they may also improve their mental health. This systematic review and meta-analysis assessed the evidence on the effectiveness of cash transfers to improve the mental health of children and young people in low-income and middle-income countries.MethodsWe searched Pubmed, EBSCOhost, Scientific Electronic Library Online, ISI Web of Science and Social Sciences Citation Index and grey literature (from January 2000 to July 2020) for studies which quantitatively assessed the impact of cash transfers on mental health in young people (aged 0–24 years), using a design that incorporated a control group. We extracted Cohen’s d effects size and used a random-effects model for the meta-analysis on studies that measured depressive symptoms, I2 statistic and assessment of study quality.ResultsWe identified 12 116 articles for screening, of which 12 were included in the systematic review (covering 13 interventions) and seven in the meta-analysis assessing impact on depressive symptoms specifically. There was high heterogeneity (I2=95.2) and a high risk of bias (0.38, 95% CIs: −5.08 to 5.85; p=0.86) across studies. Eleven interventions (85%) showed a significant positive impact of cash transfers on at least one mental health outcome in children and young people. However, no study found a positive effect on all mental health outcomes examined, and the meta-analysis showed no impact of cash transfers on depressive symptoms (0.02, 95% CIs: −0.19 to 0.23; p=0.85).ConclusionCash transfers may have positive effects on some mental health outcomes for young people, with no negative effects identified. However, there is high heterogeneity across studies, with some interventions showing no effects. Our review highlights how the effect of cash transfers may vary by social and economic context, culture, design, conditionality and mental health outcome.

scholarly journals Effectiveness of cash-plus programmes on early childhood outcomes compared to cash transfers alone: A systematic review and meta-analysis in low- and middle-income countries

PLoS Medicine ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 18 (9) ◽  
pp. e1003698 ◽  
Author(s):  
Madison T. Little ◽  
Keetie Roelen ◽  
Brittany C. L. Lange ◽  
Janina I. Steinert ◽  
Alexa R. Yakubovich ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Primary Healthcare ◽  
Child Protection ◽  
Meta Analysis ◽  
Well Being ◽  
Cash Transfers ◽  
Cash Transfer ◽  
Middle Income ◽  
Middle Income Countries ◽  
Psychosocial Stimulation ◽  
Health And Well Being

Background To strengthen the impact of cash transfers, these interventions have begun to be packaged as cash-plus programmes, combining cash with additional transfers, interventions, or services. The intervention’s complementary (“plus”) components aim to improve cash transfer effectiveness by targeting mediating outcomes or the availability of supplies or services. This study examined whether cash-plus interventions for infants and children <5 are more effective than cash alone in improving health and well-being. Methods and findings Forty-two databases, donor agencies, grey literature sources, and trial registries were systematically searched, yielding 5,097 unique articles (as of 06 April 2021). Randomised and quasi-experimental studies were eligible for inclusion if the intervention package aimed to improve outcomes for children <5 in low- and middle-income countries (LMICs) and combined a cash transfer with an intervention targeted to Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) 2 (No Hunger), SDG3 (Good Health and Well-being), SDG4 (Education), or SDG16 (Violence Prevention), had at least one group receiving cash-only, examined outcomes related to child-focused SDGs, and was published in English. Risk of bias was appraised using Cochrane Risk of Bias and ROBINS-I Tools. Random effects meta-analyses were conducted for a cash-plus intervention category when there were at least 3 trials with the same outcome. The review was preregistered with PROSPERO (CRD42018108017). Seventeen studies were included in the review and 11 meta-analysed. Most interventions operated during the first 1,000 days of the child’s life and were conducted in communities facing high rates of poverty and often, food insecurity. Evidence was found for 10 LMICs, where most researchers used randomised, longitudinal study designs (n = 14). Five intervention categories were identified, combining cash with nutrition behaviour change communication (BCC, n = 7), food transfers (n = 3), primary healthcare (n = 2), psychosocial stimulation (n = 7), and child protection (n = 4) interventions. Comparing cash-plus to cash alone, meta-analysis results suggest Cash + Food Transfers are more effective in improving height-for-age (d = 0.08 SD (0.03, 0.14), p = 0.02) with significantly reduced odds of stunting (OR = 0.82 (0.74, 0.92), p = 0.01), but had no added impact in improving weight-for-height (d = −0.13 (−0.42, 0.16), p = 0.24) or weight-for-age z-scores (d = −0.06 (−0.28, 0.15), p = 0.43). There was no added impact above cash alone from Cash + Nutrition BCC on anthropometrics; Cash + Psychosocial Stimulation on cognitive development; or Cash + Child Protection on parental use of violent discipline or exclusive positive parenting. Narrative synthesis evidence suggests that compared to cash alone, Cash + Primary Healthcare may have greater impacts in reducing mortality and Cash + Food Transfers in preventing acute malnutrition in crisis contexts. The main limitations of this review are the few numbers of studies that compared cash-plus interventions against cash alone and the potentially high heterogeneity between study findings. Conclusions In this study, we observed that few cash-plus combinations were more effective than cash transfers alone. Cash combined with food transfers and primary healthcare show the greatest signs of added effectiveness. More research is needed on when and how cash-plus combinations are more effective than cash alone, and work in this field must ensure that these interventions improve outcomes among the most vulnerable children.

The Impact of Cash Transfers: A Review of the Evidence from Low- and Middle-income Countries

2018 ◽  
Vol 48 (03) ◽  
pp. 569-594 ◽  
Author(s):  
FRANCESCA BASTAGLI ◽  
JESSICA HAGEN-ZANKER ◽  
LUKE HARMAN ◽  
VALENTINA BARCA ◽  
GEORGINA STURGE ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Evidence Base ◽  
Cash Transfers ◽  
Cash Transfer ◽  
Future Research ◽  
Unintended Effects ◽  
Screening Process ◽  
Middle Income ◽  
Middle Income Countries ◽  
The Impact ◽  
Low And Middle Income

AbstractThis article presents the findings of a review of the impact of non-contributory cash transfers on individuals and households in low- and middle-income countries, covering the literature of 15 years, from 2000 to 2015. Based on evidence extracted from 165 studies, retrieved through a systematic search and screening process, this article discusses the impact of cash transfers on 35 indicators covering six outcome areas: monetary poverty; education; health and nutrition; savings, investment and production; work; and empowerment. For most of the studies, cash transfers contributed to progress in the selected indicators in the direction intended by policymakers. Despite variations in the size and strength of the underlying evidence base by outcome and indicator, this finding is consistent across all outcome areas. The article also investigates unintended effects of cash transfer receipt, such as potential reductions in adult work effort and increased fertility, finding limited evidence for such unintended effects. Finally, the article highlights gaps in the evidence base and areas which would benefit from additional future research.

scholarly journals Impact of maternal mental health interventions on child-related outcomes in low- and middle-income countries: a systematic review and meta-analysis

2020 ◽  
Vol 29 ◽  
Author(s):  
W. A. Tol ◽  
M. C. Greene ◽  
M. E. Lasater ◽  
K. Le Roch ◽  
C. Bizouerne ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Mental Health ◽  
Exclusive Breastfeeding ◽  
Home Visiting ◽  
Health Workers ◽  
Maternal Mental Health ◽  
Meta Analysis ◽  
Middle Income ◽  
Middle Income Countries ◽  
Child Height ◽  
Low And Middle Income

Abstract Aims Observational studies have shown a relationship between maternal mental health (MMH) and child development, but few studies have evaluated whether MMH interventions improve child-related outcomes, particularly in low- and middle-income countries. The objective of this review is to synthesise findings on the effectiveness of MMH interventions to improve child-related outcomes in low- and middle-income countries (LMICs). Methods We searched for randomised controlled trials conducted in LMICs evaluating interventions with a MMH component and reporting children's outcomes. Meta-analysis was performed on outcomes included in at least two trials. Results We identified 21 trials with 28 284 mother–child dyads. Most trials were conducted in middle-income countries, evaluating home visiting interventions delivered by general health workers, starting in the third trimester of pregnancy. Only ten trials described acceptable methods for blinding outcome assessors. Four trials showed high risk of bias in at least two of the seven domains assessed in this review. Narrative synthesis showed promising but inconclusive findings for child-related outcomes. Meta-analysis identified a sizeable impact of interventions on exclusive breastfeeding (risk ratio = 1.39, 95% confidence interval (CI): 1.13–1.71, ten trials, N = 4749 mother–child dyads, I2 = 61%) and a small effect on child height-for-age at 6-months (std. mean difference = 0.13, 95% CI: 0.02–0.24, three trials, N = 1388, I2 = 0%). Meta-analyses did not identify intervention benefits for child cognitive and other growth outcomes; however, few trials measured these outcomes. Conclusions These findings support the importance of MMH to improve child-related outcomes in LMICs, particularly exclusive breastfeeding. Given, the small number of trials and methodological limitations, more rigorous trials should be conducted.

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