Experimenting to increase the effectiveness of a national campaign on hygiene behavior in Tanzania

Research output: Contribution to journalArticleResearchpeer review

Authors

  • Robert Aunger
  • Aidan Coville
  • Lukas Kwezi
  • Anyitike Mwakitalima
  • Kaposo Mwambuli
  • Arndt Reichert
  • Jérôme Sansonetti

Research Organisations

External Research Organisations

  • London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine
  • World Bank
  • Tetra Tech
  • Tanzania Ministry of Health and Social Welfare
  • Project CLEAR Ltd.
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Details

Original languageEnglish
Article number16703
Number of pages11
JournalScientific reports
Volume14
Issue number1
Early online date19 Jul 2024
Publication statusPublished - Dec 2024

Abstract

Through Tanzania’s National Sanitation Campaign, we study the effectiveness of two common elements of behavior change campaigns: endorsements from celebrities and testimonials. Using four experiments in Tanzania in early 2021 as part of the national campaign, we find that including endorsements and testimonials in text messages sent to individuals significantly increases self-reported hygiene behavior. These results mask important heterogeneity based on the source of endorsement or framing of the testimonial and provide insights into cost-effective approaches for changing behavior at scale.

ASJC Scopus subject areas

Cite this

Experimenting to increase the effectiveness of a national campaign on hygiene behavior in Tanzania. / Aunger, Robert; Coville, Aidan; Kwezi, Lukas et al.
In: Scientific reports, Vol. 14, No. 1, 16703, 12.2024.

Research output: Contribution to journalArticleResearchpeer review

Aunger, R, Coville, A, Kwezi, L, Mwakitalima, A, Mwambuli, K, Reichert, A & Sansonetti, J 2024, 'Experimenting to increase the effectiveness of a national campaign on hygiene behavior in Tanzania', Scientific reports, vol. 14, no. 1, 16703. https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-024-67144-0
Aunger, R., Coville, A., Kwezi, L., Mwakitalima, A., Mwambuli, K., Reichert, A., & Sansonetti, J. (2024). Experimenting to increase the effectiveness of a national campaign on hygiene behavior in Tanzania. Scientific reports, 14(1), Article 16703. https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-024-67144-0
Aunger R, Coville A, Kwezi L, Mwakitalima A, Mwambuli K, Reichert A et al. Experimenting to increase the effectiveness of a national campaign on hygiene behavior in Tanzania. Scientific reports. 2024 Dec;14(1):16703. Epub 2024 Jul 19. doi: 10.1038/s41598-024-67144-0
Aunger, Robert ; Coville, Aidan ; Kwezi, Lukas et al. / Experimenting to increase the effectiveness of a national campaign on hygiene behavior in Tanzania. In: Scientific reports. 2024 ; Vol. 14, No. 1.
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