Can Social Protection Affect Psychosocial Wellbeing and Why Does This Matter? Lessons from Cash Transfers in Sub-Saharan Africa

Attah, Ramlatu; Barca, Valentina; Kardan, Andrew; MacAuslan, Ian; Merttens, Fred; Pellerano, Luca

doi:10.4324/9781315228747-3

Cited by 22 publications

(40 citation statements)

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“…Few studies have assessed the impact of unconditional government cash transfers on the mental wellbeing of orphaned and vulnerable adolescents in sub-Saharan Africa. A recent review of evaluations of cash transfer programmes concluded that more evidence is needed on the effectiveness of poverty alleviation programs for improvement of mental health [22, 23]. Our study contributes towards filling this gap in knowledge.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 84%

“…By enabling households to meet basic needs, cash transfer program could increase OVA participation in school and other productive community activities, and reduce social isolation and stigma [24]. For instance, adolescents have opportunities to build more interactive and beneficial peer networks [50], which may then improve social wellbeing and general health, potentially strengthening coping strategies against anxiety, depression, and PTSS.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Although there is evidence that providing financial help may be an effective way to support orphaned children in resource-limited settings [13, 15, 20, 21], few studies have examined the relationship between direct financial support and psychological wellbeing among OVA [22]. Indeed, researchers have recently made appeals for more data that address the complexity of psychosocial wellbeing among OVA across a wide range of outcome indicators [23, 24].…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Indeed, researchers have recently made appeals for more data that address the complexity of psychosocial wellbeing among OVA across a wide range of outcome indicators [23, 24]. It is important to understand the potential impact of financial incentives on the psychological states of OVA because mental health conditions are among the leading causes of mortality among adolescents living in poverty [25, 26].…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…In SSA, orphaned adolescents experience a greater risk for adverse psychological outcomes compared to their non-orphaned counterparts [27]. Recent qualitative evidence suggests that CT programs in SSA may have a positive impact on psychosocial well-being, including improvements in educational performance, participation in social life, and empowerment for decision making [22]. However, only one study has examined the effect of CT programs on self-reported depression among young people aged 15–24 years in Kenya, finding a reduction in depression among those in CT households [9].…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Unconditional government cash transfers in support of orphaned and vulnerable adolescents in western Kenya: Is there an association with psychological wellbeing?

et al. 2017

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BackgroundOrphaned and vulnerable adolescents (OVA) in sub-Saharan Africa are at greater risk for adverse psychological outcomes compared with their non-OVA counterparts. Social interventions that provide cash transfers (CTs) have been shown to improve health outcomes among young people, but little is known about their impact on the psychological wellbeing of OVA.ObjectiveAmong OVA in western Kenya, we assessed the association between living in a household that received monthly unconditional government CTs and psychological wellbeing.MethodsWe examined the likelihood of depression, anxiety, post-traumatic stress symptoms (PTSS) and positive future outlook among 655 OVA aged between 10 and 18 years who lived in 300 randomly selected households in western Kenya that either received or did not receive unconditional monthly CTs.ResultsThe mean age was 14.0 (SD 2.4) years and 329 (50.2%) of the participants were female while 190 (29.0%) were double orphans whose biological parents were both deceased. After adjusting for socio-demographic, caregiver, and household characteristics and accounting for potential effects of participant clustering by sub-location of residence, OVA living in CT households were more likely to have a positive future outlook (odds ratio [OR] 1.47, 95% confidence interval [CI] 1.08, 1.99), less likely to be anxious (OR 0.57, 95% CI 0.42, 0.78), and less likely to have symptoms of post-traumatic stress (OR 0.50, 95% CI 0.29, 0.89). We did not find statistically significant differences in odds of depression by CT group.ConclusionOVA in CT households reported better psychological wellbeing compared to those in households not receiving CTs. CT interventions may be effective for improving psychological wellbeing among vulnerable adolescents in socioeconomically deprived households.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 84%

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Unconditional government cash transfers in support of orphaned and vulnerable adolescents in western Kenya: Is there an association with psychological wellbeing?

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López-Duarte

Vidal-Suárez

2021

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This article explores the connections between business activity and development aid that can help achieve the sustainable development goals placed by the United Nations (UN) in its development agenda. The article relies on an exhaustive review of the recent literature on development aid in the context of the European Community of West African States (ECOWAS). Connections exist between private firms' activity and both private and official aid, as firms can engage in business philanthropy, impact migrants' remittances, act as suppliers for bilateral or multilateral financially supported projects and participate in cross sector partnerships that involve agents from different societal sectors.

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Mainstreaming climate adaptation into social protection: The issues yet to be addressed

Kundo

Brueckner

Spencer

et al. 2021

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As the consequences of climate change become better understood, there is growing agreement among development practitioners and academics on the need for mainstreaming climate adaptation into social protection. This review paper assesses the progress in mainstreaming efforts, revealing that there has been considerable progress made to date. However, a number of critical issues relating to the challenges of such mainstreaming in the context of developing countries and the conceptual framework needed to assess the outcomes of such developmental programmes are yet to be addressed. These issues are examined in this paper.

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Can Social Protection Affect Psychosocial Wellbeing and Why Does This Matter? Lessons from Cash Transfers in Sub-Saharan Africa

Cited by 22 publications

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Unconditional government cash transfers in support of orphaned and vulnerable adolescents in western Kenya: Is there an association with psychological wellbeing?

Unconditional government cash transfers in support of orphaned and vulnerable adolescents in western Kenya: Is there an association with psychological wellbeing?

Exploring the nexus between business activity and development aid in favor of the development agenda

Mainstreaming climate adaptation into social protection: The issues yet to be addressed

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