Effects of a Financial Literacy and Gender-Transformative Couples Intervention on Parenting Practices in India

Condition(s) studied

Investigational drug(s) / intervention(s)

Let us Grow Together: Economic Wellbeing for Families: Married couples in clusters assigned to the intervention receive a structured program of six community-based sessions. Each session lasts between 2.5 and 3 hours and includes participatory activities, discussions, and exercises. All six sessions would be conducted by the same two facilitators - one male and one female. The content integrates financial literacy (e.g.,household budgeting, saving practices, joint financial planning) with gender-transformative training (e.g., equitable household roles, communication skills, conflict resolution, and fostering empathy between spouses). Sessions are delivered by trained facilitators in a group setting with fifteen couples, approximately every 2-4 weeks. Some sensitive content to address the economic violence context would be done in a gender-segregated manner, separately to encourage reflections, ensure safety, and reduce defensiveness. Between sessions, SMS reminders and tips are sent to participants' mobile phones to reinforce key messages.

Study summary

Many families in India experience intimate partner violence (IPV) and financial stress, both of which can harm the way parents interact with and discipline their children. When parents are under stress, they may be more likely to use harsh physical discipline or be less involved and warm with their children. Improving how couples communicate, manage money together, and relate to each other more fairly may help parents raise their children in healthier and more nurturing ways.

This study examines whether a couples-based programme, "Let Us Grow Together: Economic Wellbeing for Families," improves parenting practices among married couples in India. The programme consists of six group sessions attended by husbands and wives together. Sessions cover financial skills such as budgeting, saving, and joint financial planning, alongside topics on respectful relationships, communication, and shared decision-making in the household. Sessions are delivered over approximately five months by trained male and female facilitators, with text message reminders sent between sessions to reinforce key messages.

The study is nested within a larger randomised controlled trial called ECOVI (Disentangling and Preventing Economic Violence against Women), conducted across three Indian states: Maharashtra, Andhra Pradesh, and Rajasthan, involving 2,276 married couples. Villages or community groups are randomly assigned to either receive the programme or continue as usual. This random assignment means the study can reliably measure whether the programme, rather than some other factor, caused any changes in parenting.

Parenting is assessed at the end of the study (endline) using questions from the s-EMBU-P Questionnaire, a widely used and validated tool. These questions ask mothers and fathers separately about three aspects of parenting: rejection/harsh parenting, emotional warmth/positive parenting and overprotection/control.

The study also examines whether any improvements in parenting occur because the programme reduces violence between partners, improves parents' mental health, reduces family financial stress, or improves their relationship. All of these mediators are measured at baseline and endline. Both mothers and fathers are asked about their own parenting practices separately, making this one of the few studies to examine how such a programme affects fathers' and mothers' parenting practices in this context.

Eligibility

Primary outcome measure(s)

• Parenting practices — 6 months after intervention - at study Endline. Approximate start August 2026
  Parenting practices will be assessed using a 10-item subset of the 23-item long s-EMBU P. The following are statements about things that may happen in a family. Please select how often each typically occurs in your home. Think about \[your youngest child\] when answering. Response scale: 1 = No to 4 = Yes, most of the time I get angry with my child without letting him/her know the reason. I use physical punishment to discipline my child. I criticize my child and tell him/her how lazy and useless he/she is in front of others. I punish my child hard, even for small offences. I try to comfort and encourage my child if things go badly for him/her. I use words and gestures to show that I like my child. I praise my child. I am proud when my child succeeds in something he/she has undertaken. I put strict limits on what my child is and is not allowed to do, to which I then adhere rigorously. When my child comes home, he/she has to account for what he/she had been doing to me.

Trial sites (4)

Other trials for the same condition