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Know Thy Foe : Information Provision and Air Pollution in Tbilisi

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  • Baquie,Sandra
  • Behrer,Arnold Patrick
  • Du,Xinming
  • Fuchs Tarlovsky,Alan
  • Nozaki,Natsuko Kiso

Abstract

Middle-income countries host the majority of the world’s population exposed to unhealthy levels of air pollution, and the majority of this population lives in urban environments. This study investigates the impact of information provision on household behavior in connection with indoor and outdoor air pollution in a middle-income country’s major urban center — Tbilisi, Georgia. The study implemented a randomized controlled trial to assess whether providing households with different levels of pollution information changes their knowledge of air pollution and avoidance behavior with respect to air pollution, and improves their health outcomes. The study evaluates three treatments: a pamphlet with general information on pollution, the pamphlet combined with daily text messages about local outdoor pollution, and the pamphlet with messages about both indoor and outdoor pollution levels, supplemented with an indoor air pollution monitor. The findings show that while the pamphlet alone did not lead to behavioral change, daily text messages significantly enhanced knowledge about pollution, led to increased avoidance behaviors, and improved health outcomes. The study also examined infiltration rates throughout the city and document three facts: indoor air pollution levels are generally higher than outdoor ones, infiltration rates are high on average, and their variation is driven primarily by behaviors.

Suggested Citation

  • Baquie,Sandra & Behrer,Arnold Patrick & Du,Xinming & Fuchs Tarlovsky,Alan & Nozaki,Natsuko Kiso, 2024. "Know Thy Foe : Information Provision and Air Pollution in Tbilisi," Policy Research Working Paper Series 10852, The World Bank.
  • Handle: RePEc:wbk:wbrwps:10852
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    References listed on IDEAS

    as
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    2. A. Patrick Behrer & Sam Heft-Neal, 2024. "Higher air pollution in wealthy districts of most low- and middle-income countries," Nature Sustainability, Nature, vol. 7(2), pages 203-212, February.
    3. Marshall Burke & Sam Heft-Neal & Jessica Li & Anne Driscoll & Patrick Baylis & Matthieu Stigler & Joakim A. Weill & Jennifer A. Burney & Jeff Wen & Marissa L. Childs & Carlos F. Gould, 2022. "Exposures and behavioural responses to wildfire smoke," Nature Human Behaviour, Nature, vol. 6(10), pages 1351-1361, October.
    4. Michael Greenstone & Guojun He & Ruixue Jia & Tong Liu, 2022. "Can Technology Solve the Principal-Agent Problem? Evidence from China's War on Air Pollution," American Economic Review: Insights, American Economic Association, vol. 4(1), pages 54-70, March.
    5. Hunt Allcott & Todd Rogers, 2014. "The Short-Run and Long-Run Effects of Behavioral Interventions: Experimental Evidence from Energy Conservation," American Economic Review, American Economic Association, vol. 104(10), pages 3003-3037, October.
    6. Hanna, Rema & Hoffmann, Bridget & Oliva, Paulina & Schneider, Jake, 2021. "The Power of Perception: Limitations of Information in Reducing Air Pollution Exposure," IDB Publications (Working Papers) 11387, Inter-American Development Bank.
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