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A systematic review and meta-analysis of the impact of cash transfers on subjective well-being and mental health in low- and middle-income countries

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  • Joel McGuire

    (Happier Lives Institute)

  • Caspar Kaiser

    (University of Oxford)

  • Anders M. Bach-Mortensen

    (University of Oxford)

Abstract

Cash transfers (CTs) are increasingly recognized as a scalable intervention to alleviate financial hardship. A large body of evidence evaluates the impact of CTs on subjective well-being (SWB) and mental health (MH) in low- and middle-income countries. We undertook a systematic review, quality appraisal and meta-analysis of 45 studies examining the impact of CTs on self-reported SWB and MH outcomes, covering a sample of 116,999 individuals. After an average follow-up time of two years, we find that CTs have a small but statistically significant positive effect on both SWB (Cohen’s d = 0.13, 95% confidence interval (CI) 0.09, 0.18) and MH (d = 0.07, 95% CI 0.05, 0.09) among recipients. CT value, both relative to previous income and in absolute terms, is a strong predictor of the effect size. Based on this review and the large body of existing research demonstrating a positive impact of CTs on other outcomes (for example, health and income), there is evidence to suggest that CTs improve lives. To enable comparisons of the relative efficacy of CTs to improve MH and SWB, future research should meta-analyse the effects of alternative interventions in similar contexts.

Suggested Citation

  • Joel McGuire & Caspar Kaiser & Anders M. Bach-Mortensen, 2022. "A systematic review and meta-analysis of the impact of cash transfers on subjective well-being and mental health in low- and middle-income countries," Nature Human Behaviour, Nature, vol. 6(3), pages 359-370, March.
    • Handle: RePEc:nat:nathum:v:6:y:2022:i:3:d:10.1038_s41562-021-01252-z
    DOI: 10.1038/s41562-021-01252-z
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    Cited by:

    1. Ahrens, Achim & Casalis, Marine & Hangartner, Dominik & Sánchez, Rodrigo, 2024. "Cash-based interventions improve multidimensional integration outcomes of Venezuelan immigrants," World Development, Elsevier, vol. 181(C).
    2. Sahay, Abhilasha & Dervišević, Ervin & Perova, Elizaveta, 2023. "Conditional cash transfers and violence against women – Does the type of violence matter?," Social Science & Medicine, Elsevier, vol. 333(C).
    3. Leight, Jessica & Hirvonen, Kalle & Zafar, Sarim, 2024. "The effectiveness of cash and cash plus interventions on livelihoods outcomes: Evidence from a systematic review and meta-analysis," OSF Preprints dnc2r, Center for Open Science.
    4. Cañedo, Ana P. & Fabregas, Raissa & Gupta, Prankur, 2023. "Emergency cash transfers for informal workers: Impact evidence from Mexico," Journal of Public Economics, Elsevier, vol. 219(C).
    5. Ziwei Shu & Ramón Alberto Carrasco & Javier Portela García-Miguel & Manuel Sánchez-Montañés, 2022. "Multiple Scenarios of Quality of Life Index Using Fuzzy Linguistic Quantifiers: The Case of 85 Countries in Numbeo," Mathematics, MDPI, vol. 10(12), pages 1-28, June.
    6. Clotilde Mahé & Philipp Hessel, 2022. "School-age exposure to conditional cash transfers and adult mental health: Evidence from Mexico’s Progresa," Documentos de trabajo 20155, Escuela de Gobierno - Universidad de los Andes.
    7. Sarmiento, Luis & Wägner, Nicole & Zaklan, Aleksandar, 2023. "The air quality and well-being effects of low emission zones," Journal of Public Economics, Elsevier, vol. 227(C).
    8. Molina, Teresa & Cho, Yoon Y., 2024. "The Importance of Existing Social Protection Programs for Mental Health in Pandemic Times," IZA Discussion Papers 16737, Institute of Labor Economics (IZA).

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