Information Provision over the Phone Saves Lives: An RCT to Contain COVID-19 in Rural Bangladesh at the Pandemic’s Onset

Shyamal Chowdhury, Hannah Schildberg-Hörisch, Sebastian Schneider and Matthias Sutter
Additional contact information
Shyamal Chowdhury: University of Sydney; IZA, Bonn
Hannah Schildberg-Hörisch: IZA, Bonn; University of Düsseldorf; Max Planck Institute for Research on Collective Goods, Bonn
Authors registered in the RePEc Author Service: Hannah Schildberg-Hoerisch ()

No 211, ECONtribute Discussion Papers Series from University of Bonn and University of Cologne, Germany

Abstract: Lack of information about COVID-19 and its spread may have contributed to excess mortality at the pandemic’s onset. In April and May 2020, we implemented a randomized controlled trial with more than 3,000 households in 150 Bangladeshi villages. Our one-to-one information campaign via phone stressed the importance of social distancing and hygiene measures, and illustrated the consequences of an exponential spread of COVID-19. We find that information provision improves knowledge about COVID-19 and induces significant behavioral changes. Information provision also yields considerably better health outcomes, most importantly by reducing the number of reported deaths by about 50% in treated villages.

Keywords: Field experiment; COVID-19; Information intervention; Death rates (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: C93 D01 D91 I12 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Pages: 44 pages
Date: 2022-11
New Economics Papers: this item is included in nep-exp
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https://www.econtribute.de/RePEc/ajk/ajkdps/ECONtribute_211_2022.pdf First version, 2022 (application/pdf)

Related works:
Working Paper: Information Provision over the Phone Saves Lives: An RCT to Contain COVID-19 in Rural Bangladesh at the Pandemic's Onset (2022)
Working Paper: Information provision over the phone saves lives: An RCT to contain COVID-19 in rural Bangladesh at the pandemic's onset (2022)
Working Paper: Information provision over the phone saves lives: An RCT to contain COVID-19 in rural Bangladesh at the pandemic's onset (2022)
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