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Do Information Technologies Improve Teenagers'Sexual Education ? Evidence from a Randomized Evaluation in Colombia

Author

Listed:
  • Chong,Alberto
  • Gonzalez-Navarro,Marco
  • Karlan,Dean S.
  • Valdivia,Martin

Abstract

This study reports results from a randomized evaluation of a mandatory six-month Internet-based sexual education course implemented across public junior high schools in 21 Colombian cities. Six months after finishing the course, the study finds a 0.4 standard deviation improvement in knowledge, a 0.2 standard deviation improvement in attitudes, and a 55 percent increase in the likelihood of redeeming vouchers for condoms as a result of taking the course. The data provide no evidence of spillovers to control classrooms within treatment schools, and it finds that treatment effects are enhanced when a larger share of a student's friends also takes the course. The low cost of the online course along with the effectiveness the study documents suggests this technology is a viable alternative for improving sexual education in middle-income countries.

Suggested Citation

  • Chong,Alberto & Gonzalez-Navarro,Marco & Karlan,Dean S. & Valdivia,Martin, 2019. "Do Information Technologies Improve Teenagers'Sexual Education ? Evidence from a Randomized Evaluation in Colombia," Policy Research Working Paper Series 8821, The World Bank.
    • Handle: RePEc:wbk:wbrwps:8821
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    File URL: http://documents.worldbank.org/curated/en/936401555505751901/pdf/Do-Information-Technologies-Improve-Teenagers-Sexual-Education-Evidence-from-a-Randomized-Evaluation-in-Colombia.pdf
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    Cited by:

    1. Augsburg, Britta & Bancalari, Antonella & Durrani, Zara & Vaidyanathan, Madhav & White, Zach, 2022. "When nature calls back: Sustaining behavioral change in rural Pakistan," Journal of Development Economics, Elsevier, vol. 158(C).
    2. Jamison, Julian & Karlan, Dean & Raffler, Pia, 2013. "Mixed Method Evaluation of a Passive mHealth Sexual Information Texting Service in Uganda," Working Papers 116, Yale University, Department of Economics.
    3. repec:dgr:rugsom:14017-eef is not listed on IDEAS
    4. Julian Jamison, Dean Karlan, Pia Raffler, 2013. "Mixed Method Evaluation of a Passive Health Sexual Information Texting Service in Uganda-Working Paper 332," Working Papers 332, Center for Global Development.
    5. Abate, Gashaw T. & Abay, Kibrom A. & Chamberlin, Jordan & Sebsibie, Samuel, 2024. "Measuring land rental market participation in smallholder agriculture can survey design innovations improve land market participation statistics?," IFPRI discussion papers 2255, International Food Policy Research Institute (IFPRI).
    6. Sevin Kaytan & Stwarth Piedra-Bonilla & Tom Zohar, 2025. "The Complementary Role of Information and Contraceptive Access in Teen Pregnancy," Working Papers wp2025_2507, CEMFI.
    7. Carole Treibich & Aurélia Lépine, 2019. "Estimating misreporting in condom use and its determinants among sex workers: Evidence from the list randomisation method," Health Economics, John Wiley & Sons, Ltd., vol. 28(1), pages 144-160, January.
    8. Juliane Zenker & Andreas Wagener & Sebastian Vollmer, 2018. "Better Knowledge Need Not Affect Behavior: A Randomized Evaluation of the Demand for Lottery Tickets in Rural Thailand," The World Bank Economic Review, World Bank, vol. 32(3), pages 570-583.
    9. Dupas, Pascaline & Miguel, Edward, 2016. "Impacts and Determinants of Health Levels in Low-Income Countries," Department of Economics, Working Paper Series qt3r04k69j, Department of Economics, Institute for Business and Economic Research, UC Berkeley.
    10. de Oliveira, Jessica Antunes & França, Marco Tulio Aniceto, 2025. "Evaluating the impact of the Programa Saúde na Escola on adolescent sexual and reproductive health in Brazil: A quasi-experimental analysis using propensity score matching," Evaluation and Program Planning, Elsevier, vol. 112(C).
    11. David SAHN & Catalina HERRERA, 2014. "The Impact of Early Childbearing on Schooling and Cognitive Skills among Young Women in Madagascar," Working Papers 201428, CERDI.
    12. Melissa Hidrobo & Giordano Palloni & Daniel O. Gilligan & Jenny C. Aker & Natasha Ledlie, 2022. "Paying for Digital Information: Assessing Farmers’ Willingness to Pay for a Digital Agriculture and Nutrition Service in Ghana," Economic Development and Cultural Change, University of Chicago Press, vol. 70(4), pages 1367-1402.
    13. De Cao, Elisabetta & Lutz, Clemens, 2014. "Sensitive survey questions," Research Report 14017-EEF, University of Groningen, Research Institute SOM (Systems, Organisations and Management).

    More about this item

    JEL classification:

    • I1 - Health, Education, and Welfare - - Health
    • I2 - Health, Education, and Welfare - - Education
    • O12 - Economic Development, Innovation, Technological Change, and Growth - - Economic Development - - - Microeconomic Analyses of Economic Development

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