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Strengthening Relationships and Mental Health Through a Couples-Based Economic Empowerment Intervention
Sponsor: Technical University of Munich
Summary
This psychosocial sub-study is embedded within a larger cluster-randomised controlled trial titled Disentangling and Preventing Economic Violence against Women (ECOVI), conducted in rural and urban communities across Maharashtra, Andhra Pradesh, and Rajasthan, India. The sub-study evaluates the effects of a couples-based financial-literacy and gender-transformative intervention on psychological distress and relationship quality among married couples. A total of 150 clusters were randomised in a 1:1 ratio to the intervention or control condition by an external trial statistician. Approximately 15 husband-wife pairs were enrolled per cluster, resulting in 2,276 couples at baseline. Participants in intervention clusters attend six structured, community-based sessions that combine financial literacy content with gender equity, communication, empathy, and shared decision-making activities. Participants in control clusters receive no structured study intervention. Assessments are conducted at baseline, before the first intervention session, and at endline, approximately 6 months after intervention delivery. The primary outcome is psychological distress at endline, measured using a response-adapted 6-item General Health Questionnaire. The secondary outcome is relationship quality at endline, measured using a composite of relationship satisfaction and relationship empathy. Treatment effects will be estimated using models that adjust for the corresponding baseline outcome and state. Exploratory mediation analyses will assess whether the intervention's effect on psychological distress is statistically consistent with indirect pathways operating through relationship quality and economic stress.
Official title: A Randomized Controlled Trial of a Couple-Based Economic Empowerment Intervention to Improve Relationship Quality and Mental Health in Three States of India
Key Details
Gender
All
Age Range
18 Years - Any
Study Type
INTERVENTIONAL
Enrollment
4552
Start Date
2025-07-29
Completion Date
2027-06
Last Updated
2026-09-28
Healthy Volunteers
Yes
Interventions
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 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 and e
Locations (2)
50 clusters across Maharashtra, Andhra Pradesh and Rajasthan
Mumbai, Maharashtra, India
Vayam Organisation
Noida, India