Assessing the impacts of a water, sanitation, and hygiene (WASH) intervention on changing behavior in Bihar, India

Keywords: WASH, Behavior Change, India
Abstract Type: Virtual Poster Abstract

Abstract

Access to safe water, sanitation, and hygiene (WASH) is crucial for the health and well-being of humans around the world. Research has shown that there is a relationship between WASH practices and the transmission of diseases such as soil transmitted helminthiases, arsenicosis, and preventable diarrheal illnesses (Mara, 2017; Prüss-Üstün et al., 2004). The Vaishali District in Bihar, India, is a region confronting a range of WASH issues. Because of this, the Sehgal Foundation launched a behavior change campaign called “WASH for Healthy Homes, India” that incorporates principles of Behavior Centered Design. The intervention sought to increase handwashing and the use of silver-ceramic pot filters. This study identifies successes and failures of the WASH intervention and the overall effectiveness it had on changing behavior. Furthermore, this study identifies barriers and facilitators that impacted success of the intervention. Baseline and endline survey data from 317 households in five hamlets were evaluated using multiple statistical tests. Focus group discussions with project beneficiaries and semi-structured interviews with project beneficiaries and key informants were examined using thematic coding. Statistical results provided insight on the extent behaviors were changed and which variables contributed to change with one key finding being a significant uptake in pot filter use. Thematic coding produced several major themes including gender and economic barriers that helped determine factors that affected change and served to further inform statistical results. Findings of this research can be used by nonprofits to better design and execute behavior change interventions in a time of increasing WASH challenges.