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Risk information, risk salience, and adolescent sexual behavior: Experimental evidence from Cameroon

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  • Dupas, Pascaline
  • Huillery, Elise
  • Seban, Juliette

Abstract

Why do teenagers take risks and what can be done about it? Results from a randomized experiment conducted with teenage schoolgirls in Cameroon suggest that risky sexual behavior responds to both risk mitigation information and risk salience. We find that sexual education sessions delivered to students either by specialized consultants over an hour, or through regular school staff over multiple weeks, led to improved health knowledge and decreased teen pregnancy rates in the following 9–12 months. A one- time, one-hour group-administered questionnaire on HIV and sexual behavior had an equally large impact on teen pregnancy without improving knowledge − it instead made the risks more salient and changed subjective beliefs. We find no effects among urban schoolgirls, who are more exposed to information and experience much lower rates of teenage pregnancy under the status quo.

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  • Dupas, Pascaline & Huillery, Elise & Seban, Juliette, 2018. "Risk information, risk salience, and adolescent sexual behavior: Experimental evidence from Cameroon," Journal of Economic Behavior & Organization, Elsevier, vol. 145(C), pages 151-175.
    • Handle: RePEc:eee:jeborg:v:145:y:2018:i:c:p:151-175
    DOI: 10.1016/j.jebo.2017.10.007
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    2. Celhay, Pablo A. & Depetris-Chauvin, Emilio & Riquelme, Cristina, 2024. "When a strike strikes twice: Massive student mobilizations and teenage pregnancy in Chile," Journal of Development Economics, Elsevier, vol. 170(C).
    3. Chuang, Erica & Dupas, Pascaline & Huillery, Elise & Seban, Juliette, 2021. "Sex, lies, and measurement: Consistency tests for indirect response survey methods," Journal of Development Economics, Elsevier, vol. 148(C).
    4. Rita Abdel Sater, 2021. "Essays on the application of behavioural insights to environmental policy [Essais sur l’application des connaissances comportementales aux politiques environnementales]," SciencePo Working papers tel-03450909, HAL.
    5. Athey, Susan & Bergstrom, Katy & Hadad, Vitor & Jamison, Julian C. & Ozler, Berk & Parisotto, Luca & Sama, Julius Dohbit, 2021. "Shared Decision-Making: Can Improved Counseling Increase Willingness to Pay for Modern Contraceptives?," Research Papers 3987, Stanford University, Graduate School of Business.
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    7. Katy Bergstrom & Berk Özler, 2023. "Improving the Well-Being of Adolescent Girls in Developing Countries," The World Bank Research Observer, World Bank, vol. 38(2), pages 179-212.
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    9. Bursztyn, Leonardo & Rao, Akaash & Roth, Christopher & Yanagizawa-Drott, David, 2020. "Misinformation during a Pandemic," The Warwick Economics Research Paper Series (TWERPS) 1274, University of Warwick, Department of Economics.
    10. Julia Cage & Valeria Rueda, 2017. "Sex and the Mission: The Conflicting Effects of Early Christian Investments on the HIV Epidemic in sub-Saharan Africa," Sciences Po publications 12192, Sciences Po.
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    12. Breda, Thomas & Grenet, Julien & Monnet, Marion & Van Effenterre, Clémentine, 2020. "Do Female Role Models Reduce the Gender Gap in Science? Evidence from French High Schools," IZA Discussion Papers 13163, Institute of Labor Economics (IZA).
    13. Abdel Sater, Rita & Perona, Mathieu & huillery, elise & Chevallier, Coralie, 2021. "The effectiveness of personalised versus generic information in changing behaviour: Evidence from an indoor air quality experiment," SocArXiv kw3tn, Center for Open Science.
    14. Gutierrez, Emilio & Rubli, Adrian & Tavares, Tiago, 2022. "Information and behavioral responses during a pandemic: Evidence from delays in Covid-19 death reports," Journal of Development Economics, Elsevier, vol. 154(C).
    15. Erminia Florio, 2023. "Information Campaigns and Migration Perceptions," CEIS Research Paper 564, Tor Vergata University, CEIS, revised 31 Jul 2023.
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    17. Arkedis, Jean & Creighton, Jessica & Dixit, Akshay & Fung, Archon & Kosack, Stephen & Levy, Dan & Tolmie, Courtney, 2021. "Can transparency and accountability programs improve health? Experimental evidence from Indonesia and Tanzania," World Development, Elsevier, vol. 142(C).
    18. Cagé, Julia & Rueda, Valeria, 2017. "Sex and the Mission: The Conflicting Effects of Early Christian Investments on the HIV Epidemic in sub-Saharan Africa," CEPR Discussion Papers 12192, C.E.P.R. Discussion Papers.
    19. Pablo Celhay & Emilio Depetris-Chauvin & María Cristina Riquelme, 2020. "When a Strike Streikes Twice: Massive Student Mobilizations and Teenage," Documentos de Trabajo 550, Instituto de Economia. Pontificia Universidad Católica de Chile..
    20. Feng, Jingbing & Xu, Xian & Zou, Hong, 2023. "Risk communication clarity and insurance demand: The case of the COVID-19 pandemic," Journal of Economic Dynamics and Control, Elsevier, vol. 146(C).
    21. Rita Abdel Sater, 2021. "Essays on the application of behavioural insights to environmental policy [Essais sur l’application des connaissances comportementales aux politiques environnementales]," SciencePo Working papers Main tel-03450909, HAL.
    22. Ximeng Fang & Lorenz Goette & Bettina Rockenbach & Matthias Sutter & Verena Tiefenbeck & Samuel Schoeb & Thorsten Staake, 2023. "Complementarities in Behavioral Interventions: Evidence from a Field Experiment on Resource Conservation," Discussion Paper Series of the Max Planck Institute for Research on Collective Goods 2023_13, Max Planck Institute for Research on Collective Goods.
    23. Fang, Ximeng & Goette, Lorenz & Rockenbach, Bettina & Sutter, Matthias & Tiefenbeck, Verena & Schoeb, Samuel & Staake, Thorsten, 2023. "Complementarities in behavioral interventions: Evidence from a field experiment on resource conservation," Journal of Public Economics, Elsevier, vol. 228(C).

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