Principal investigator: Bruno Benevit
Original title: Can youth empowerment programs reduce violence against girls during the COVID-19 pandemic?
Authors: Selim Gulesci, Manuela Puente-Beccar and Diego Ubfal
Location of the Intervention: Bolívia
Sample Size: 600 adolescents
Sector: Public policies
Primary Variable of Interest: Violence
Type of Intervention: Training program
Methodology: RCT
Summary
The COVID-19 pandemic intensified risk factors associated with domestic violence, especially against women and children. This study analyzed the impact of a youth empowerment program in Bolivia during the pandemic lockdown period. Using a randomized controlled trial with 600 vulnerable adolescents, the study evaluated the effects of the program, which offered training in social and technical skills, sex education, mentoring, and job search assistance. The results indicated that, seven months after the program's completion, there was an increase in the girls' earnings and a reduction in violence against them. This evidence suggests that multifaceted empowerment programs can reduce the violence experienced by young women during periods of high risk.
- Policy Problem
The COVID-19 pandemic brought with it a series of strict containment measures that increased the risk factors associated with domestic violence. Media and institutional reports indicated an increase in domestic violence, especially against women and children, in countries affected by the pandemic (Gulesci; Puente–Beccar; Ubfal, 2021). This phenomenon has been observed in various events and countries in recent years, highlighting the need to better understand the factors that contribute to this violence.
Research has shown that economic crises, conflicts, and natural disasters are frequently associated with an increase in the prevalence of violence against women and children. A recent study by Ravindran and Shah (2023) highlights that districts with stricter lockdown measures showed higher reports of domestic violence in India. Similarly, the work of Bandiera et al. (2020) found an increase in teenage pregnancy and a reduction in school enrollment among girls in Sierra Leone during the school closures that occurred during the 2014-16 Ebola epidemic. The study also observed that training programs reduced these negative impacts, revealing the potential of similar policies in mitigating the negative impacts of social confinement on vulnerable youth.
These studies highlight the importance of interventions that can reduce violence during high-risk periods. In this sense, this study evaluated the impact of a youth empowerment program on the prevalence of violence against young people during the lockdown during the COVID-19 pandemic in Bolivia. The program combined training in social and technical skills, sex education, mentoring, and job search assistance. Understanding this problem is crucial, as it can provide valuable insights for policymakers on how multifaceted programs can mitigate adverse effects during times of crisis.
- Policy Implementation Context
The program “Adolescents: Protagonists of Development” was implemented by the NGO Save the Children The program has been implemented in several countries since 2016. Its goal is to help vulnerable youth find employment, improve their working conditions, and strengthen their income-generating capacity. The program's target audience consists of vulnerable adolescents aged 15 to 18. In its implementation in Bolivia, adolescents were recruited in four cities using various recruitment strategies.
The program offered young people training in personal and technical skills, sex education, mentoring, and support in job searching or business development. Activities included general training modules such as personal empowerment, sexual and reproductive health, economic empowerment, and basic skills, as well as training in specific technical skills as demanded by the market. After the general training, participants could choose up to three technical training courses, with a total duration of approximately 70 hours.
The project also helped teenagers find interviews with employers who offered jobs that matched their skill level and met certain standards, such as being compatible with their education, not involving risky activities, and offering a salary no lower than the minimum wage. In addition, the program offered teenagers who did not wish to find employment the opportunity to start their own business, although this only occurred with one teenager in the sample.
- Evaluation Details
The study was conducted using an RCT to evaluate the effects of a youth empowerment program in four cities in Bolivia. The sample selection involved 600 vulnerable young people, who were recruited through various strategies, such as leaflets in markets and other public places, Facebook ads, cooperation with neighborhood associations and schools offering evening classes, as well as press conferences.
The experiment covered four metropolitan cities in Bolivia: Cochabamba, La Paz, Oruro, and Santa Cruz. After selection, participants were randomly divided into two groups: a treatment group, which participated in the program, and a control group, which had the opportunity to participate after the evaluation. The final sample consisted of 511 adolescents who completed both the initial survey and the follow-up survey.
The initial research was conducted in person, while the follow-up research was conducted by telephone due to mobility restrictions imposed by the COVID-19 pandemic. The data collected included information on region, gender, age, employment status, experience of violence, income, and social skills. The samples were stratified considering a large portion of this information.
Data collection considered reports of physical, psychological, and sexual violence. Additionally, income information encompassed various sources, including formal employment, self-employment, informal transfers from family or friends, and formal transfers from governments or NGOs. Social and communication skills were measured using the tool…Employability Assessment (EA)” developed by the NGO Save the Childrenwhich assesses six categories of skills.
The sample characteristics revealed that 63% of the young people were girls and that most were between 17 and 18 years old. The experiment revealed that more than half of the young people in the sample reported having suffered some type of violence. Physical and psychological violence was more prevalent among boys, while sexual violence was more common among girls. Furthermore, the young people had low monthly incomes, with an average of Bs. 441 (US$ 64) for boys and Bs. 406 (US$ 59) for girls.
- Method
To estimate the treatment program effects, the ordinary least squares (OLS) method was used. In addition to the treatment identifier variable, the models considered the baseline level of the outcome variable for each individual, gender, and the stratification variables from the randomization of the experiment. Before making the estimates, the authors confirmed that the characteristics between the young people in both the treated and control groups were statistically similar before treatment, validating the RCT conducted.
The main outcome variables analyzed were three: reported violence in the three months prior to the survey, monthly income in the month prior to the survey, and socio-emotional skills. Analyses were adjusted to account for stratification in randomization and potential confounding factors. To measure the program's effects on the prevalence of violence, the follow-up survey included direct questions about physical, psychological, and sexual violence, as well as a list experiment to address potential self-report biases.
The exploration of possible mechanisms by which the program may have reduced violence considered several channels, including increased income for girls, which may have improved their options outside the home and their economic empowerment, and reduced stress related to economic insecurity. In addition, other potential mechanisms were discussed, such as improved socio-emotional skills and increased social capital.
- Main results
The results revealed that the youth empowerment program had significant effects in reducing violence against girls during the period of lockdownParticipants in the treatment group reported a 9,5 percentage point (pp) decrease in the prevalence of violence, representing a 46% reduction compared to the control group. Physical, psychological, and sexual violence also decreased among girls in the treatment group, with reductions of approximately 3, 10, and 3 pp, respectively.
The results of the list experiment confirmed that physical violence was significantly lower among girls in the treatment group compared to the control group. The rate of physical violence was 35 percentage points lower for the treated girls, although not statistically significant. For the boys, there was no significant reduction in violence, and even a marginal increase in psychological violence was observed.
In terms of income, the program increased the girls' monthly earnings (last month) by Bs. 119, representing a 41% increase compared to the control group. When disaggregating income sources, it was observed that the treated girls were less likely to report earnings from salaried work. However, the positive effects on other income sources were not significant, with a marginal increase in income from self-employment and formal transfers.
Finally, social skills did not show significant changes for girls, except for an improvement in job search skills. For boys, there was an increase in confidence, but this did not translate into improvements in social skills. The lack of changes in social skills suggests that other factors, such as increased income, may have been more influential in reducing violence against girls.
- Lessons in Public Policy
In this article, the authors conducted an RCT to evaluate the effects of a youth empowerment program in Bolivia during the period of lockdown of the COVID-19 pandemic, in which a set of interpersonal skills courses was offered (soft skills) and technicians. The results indicated that the program significantly reduced violence against girls and increased the participants' monthly earnings. Furthermore, no significant changes were observed in the young people's social skills after participating in the program.
The evidence presented in this article helps to identify factors that can reduce violence against girls during high-risk periods, such as the pandemic. The results provide useful information for policymakers, highlighting the importance of multifaceted youth empowerment programs. The authors emphasize that the implementation of such programs can be an effective strategy to mitigate violence and improve the economic conditions of young women in vulnerable situations.
References
BANDIERA, Oriana et al. Do School Closures During an Epidemic Have Persistent E¤ects? Evidence from Sierra Leone in the Time of Ebola. Working Paper, UCL, Jul. 2020.
GULESCI, Selim; PUENTE–BECCAR, Manuela; UBFAL, Diego. Can youth empowerment programs reduce violence against girls during the COVID-19 pandemic? Journal of Development Economics, v. 153, p. 102716, nov. 2021.
RAVINDRAN, Saravana; SHAH, Manisha. Unintended consequences of lockdowns, COVID-19 and the Shadow Pandemic in India. Nature Human Behavior, v. 7, no. 3, p. 323–331, 19 Jan. 2023.
