This study uses a cluster randomized controlled trial to evaluate the impact of a nationwide malaria prevention advertising campaign delivered through social media in India. Ads were randomly assigned at the district level, and the study relies on data from two independently recruited samples (8,257 individuals) and administrative records. Among users residing in solid (concrete) dwellings, where malaria risk is lower, the campaign led to an 11 percent increase in mosquito net usage and a 13 percent increase in timely treatment seeking. Self-reported malaria incidence decreased by 44 percent. Consistently, recorded health facility data indicate a reduction in urban monthly incidence of 6.2 cases per million people, corresponding to 30 percent of the overall monthly incidence rate of malaria. Conversely, the study finds no impact on households living in non-solid dwellings, which face higher malaria risk, nor among rural settlements where such dwellings are more prevalent. To disentangle if this lack of impact stems from ineffective content or insufficient reach, an individual-level trial was conducted (1,542 individuals), ensuring campaign exposure for both household types. The findings indicate an increase in bed net usage and timely treatment seeking for both groups, underscoring the need for improved targeting in social media campaigns to fulfill public health goals.
Authors
Donati, Dante, Rao, Nandan, Orozco-Olvera, Victor, Muñoz-Boudet, Ana Maria
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- Associated content
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- Citation
- “ Donati, Dante ; Rao, Nandan ; Orozco-Olvera, Victor ; Muñoz-Boudet, Ana Maria . 2024 . Can Facebook Ads Prevent Malaria? Two Field Experiments in India . Policy Research Working Paper; 10967 . © Washington, DC: World Bank . http://hdl.handle.net/10986/42412 License: CC BY 3.0 IGO . ”
- Collection(s)
- Policy Research Working Papers
- DOI
- http://dx.doi.org/10.1596/1813-9450-10967
- Identifier externaldocumentum
- 34417807
- Identifier internaldocumentum
- 34417807
- Pages
- 66
- Published in
- United States of America
- Region country
- India
- RelationisPartofseries
- Policy Research Working Paper; 10967
- Report
- WPS10967
- Rights
- CC BY 3.0 IGO
- Rights Holder
- World Bank
- Rights URI
- https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0/igo/
- UNIT
- DIME Gender
- URI
- https://hdl.handle.net/10986/42412
- date disclosure
- 2024-11-13
- region administrative
- South Asia
- theme
- Human Development and Gender,Gender
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Table of Contents
- Introduction 4
- Contribution to the Literature 7
- Background and Intervention 9
- Malaria 9
- The Intervention 9
- Theoretical Framework 11
- Study Design 12
- Cluster-randomized Controlled Trial 12
- Stratified Recruitment 14
- Timeline and Data 16
- Study Timeline 16
- Survey Samples and Administrative Data 16
- Outcome Measures 18
- Empirical Specifications 19
- Analysis of Survey Data 19
- Analysis of Administrative Data 19
- Results 21
- Samples Characteristics and Randomization Checks 21
- Survey-based Results 22
- Preventative behaviors and response actions during the campaign 22
- Self-reported malaria incidence after the campaign 25
- Evidence from Administrative Data 27
- Placebo Regressions and Robustness Checks 29
- Mechanisms: Limited Effectiveness or Limited Reach? 30
- Post-Campaign Recall 30
- Individual-level Feed Experiment 31
- Targeting Matters 32
- Implications for Practitioners 35
- Cost-effectiveness 35
- Conclusions 36
- Content Development and Campaign Management 43
- Developing content for different personas 43
- Campaign dissemination via Facebook and Instagram ads 46
- Facebook and Instagram community management 46
- Survey Questions 48
- Longitudinal Survey 48
- Cross-sectional Survey 48
- Individual-level Study 49
- Figures 50
- Tables 52
