Effects of a Dialogic Book-sharing Intervention for Female Caregivers in Rural Tanzania (EDBiT): Protocol for a...

Area of Science:

• Child Development
• Early Childhood Education
• Global Health

Background:

• Adverse socioeconomic conditions in low- and middle-income countries hinder child language and cognitive development.
• Compromised caregiver-child interactions are a key factor, increasing parenting stress.
• Dialogic book-sharing (DBS) interventions improve caregiver-child interactions and child outcomes in high-income and urban settings.

Purpose of the Study:

• To evaluate a DBS parenting program for caregivers of children aged 15-45 months in rural Tanzania.
• To assess the intervention's impact on child cognitive and socioemotional skills, parenting, and parental stress.
• To examine effects on child health outcomes.

Main Methods:

• A 3-arm cluster randomized controlled trial involving 443 female caregivers.
• Randomization to either an index DBS intervention, an active control (playful activities), or a waitlist control group.
• Primary outcomes: child language, parental sensitivity, parent-child interaction. Secondary outcomes: child attention/behavior, parenting practices, parental stress. Data collected via questionnaires, observations, and qualitative methods.

Main Results:

• Data collection concluded in September 2024.
• Study results are anticipated for publication by late 2025.
• The trial provides crucial data on DBS effectiveness in a vulnerable rural population.

Conclusions:

• This trial investigates the impact of a scalable DBS intervention in rural Tanzania.
• Findings will contribute to the international understanding of early development interventions for enhancing child outcomes.
• The study addresses a critical gap in evidence from resource-limited rural communities.