Evaluating a Digital Empowerment Curriculum for College Students in India (Public)
Project
Evaluating a Digital Empowerment Curriculum for College Students in India
Study ID sspp-2024-0046-v1
Study Title Evaluating a Digital Empowerment Curriculum for College Students in India
Authors Mridul Joshi, Jalnidh Kaur, Lena Song
Completion Time 10 Minutes
Close Date (UTC) March 31, 2025
Discipline Economics
Field Development Economics, Experimental Economics, Behavioral Economics
Country India
Abstract
Concerns about the negative impacts of smartphones and social media have risen alongside their surging use in developing countries. One potential solution is educational interventions to encourage users to optimize their interactions with digital technologies. We co-created a multi-week, evidence-based digital empowerment curriculum designed to expand students’ ability to exert deliberate control over their use of social media and smartphones. We implement this curriculum with college students in India as a classroom-based course and as a text message-based course. Using a randomized controlled trial, we evaluate both versions of the curriculum and estimate the effects of exposure to the curriculum on social media consumption, mental health, misinformation discernment, sleep and concentration, and academic outcomes.
Study ID sspp-2024-0046-v1
Study Title Evaluating a Digital Empowerment Curriculum for College Students in India
Authors Mridul Joshi, Jalnidh Kaur, Lena Song
Completion Time 10 Minutes
Close Date (UTC) March 31, 2025
Discipline Economics
Field Development Economics, Experimental Economics, Behavioral Economics
Country India
Abstract
Concerns about the negative impacts of smartphones and social media have risen alongside their surging use in developing countries. One potential solution is educational interventions to encourage users to optimize their interactions with digital technologies. We co-created a multi-week, evidence-based digital empowerment curriculum designed to expand students’ ability to exert deliberate control over their use of social media and smartphones. We implement this curriculum with college students in India as a classroom-based course and as a text message-based course. Using a randomized controlled trial, we evaluate both versions of the curriculum and estimate the effects of exposure to the curriculum on social media consumption, mental health, misinformation discernment, sleep and concentration, and academic outcomes.
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