Many women in low-income countries carry heavy loads of drinking water for their families in difficult terrain. This can adversely affect their health and well-being. The present study is the first to investigate the physical burden of water carrying and women’s psychosocial well-being, and how this relationship is moderated by environmental and health conditions. Trained local interviewers conducted interviews with 1001 women across five rural communities in Nepal. In addition, objective measurement was used to assess the weight carried and distance from the water source. The physical burden of water carrying was calculated from weight, distance, and frequency of trips. Its association with psychosocial well-being was modeled using generalized estimating equations. Two additional models included the terrain and uterine prolapse as moderators. The physical burden of water carrying is directly related to higher emotional distress and reduced daily functioning. This correlation was exacerbated for women carrying in hilly versus flat terrain, and for those who had uterine prolapse. Our results underline the importance of adequate water access for women’s psychosocial well-being, especially for vulnerable populations such as women with impaired health (e.g., uterine prolapse) or those living in hilly terrain. The results further highlight the interconnectedness of the Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) 6: water access, SDG 3: health and well-being, and SDG 5: gender equality.

Long-term management and use of community-based safe water systems are essential to reduce water-related health risks in rural areas. Water sector professionals frequently cite water users’ sense of ownership for the water system as essential for its continuity. This study aims to provide the first insight into users’ understanding of psychological ownership, as well as generalizable data, regarding safe water management in rural Nepal. In this convergent mixed-methods study, we conducted 22 qualitative and 493 quantitative interviews with community members in five districts of Nepal, where spring-fed piped water supplies were previously implemented through a demand-led, participatory planning approach. We analyzed the qualitative data by thematic analysis and modeled quantitative routes to and consequences of psychological ownership in generalized estimating equations. Findings from qualitative and quantitative analyses converged to show that community members’ decision-making, investment of labor and money, and knowledge about the water system were associated with greater psychological ownership. Psychological ownership was related to greater acceptance and responsibility for maintenance and use, as well as greater confidence in functionality of the water system, but not to its actual functionality. The results highlight the potential of psychological ownership and community participation for the longevity of community-based safe water infrastructure.

Background: Smallholder farmers receive educational interventions on safe pesticide handling by governmental agencies, industries, or nongovernmental organizations to reduce exposure risks. However, existing educational interventions have limited effects on changing behaviors. Targeting psychosocial determinants of behavior change in educational interventions through theory- and evidence-based approaches may enhance their effectiveness. Objective: We aim at describing the intervention development and study design of a 3-arm cluster-randomized controlled trial to assess the effects in improving safe pesticide handling and reducing pesticide exposure of (1) an existing educational intervention and (2) a newly developed SMS text messaging intervention based on the Risks, Attitudes, Norms, Abilities, and Self-regulation (RANAS) behavior change approach. Methods: We enrolled 539 Ugandan smallholder farmers in 12 clusters (subcounties). The clusters, each with 45 farmers, were randomly allocated to one of the three arms: (1) educational intervention, (2) educational intervention+RANAS-based SMS text messages, or (3) control group. The educational intervention comprised a 2-day workshop that targeted multiple aspects of safe pesticide handling, whereas the SMS text messages targeted the use of personal protective equipment (PPE) and were based on the RANAS approach. For intervention development in this study, this approach includes identifying psychosocial determinants of PPE use at baseline and selecting behavior change techniques to target them in SMS text messages. The primary outcomes of the study are (1) pesticide knowledge, attitude, and practice scores indicating performance throughout the educational intervention; and (2) frequency of PPE use. Secondary outcomes are the RANAS-based behavioral determinants of PPE use, the frequency of glove use, algorithm-based pesticide exposure intensity scores, and signs and symptoms of pesticide poisoning. The outcomes were assessed in structured interviews before the intervention (baseline) and at the 12-month follow-up. The effect of the interventions among the arms will be analyzed using the intervention arms and baseline measures as predictors and the follow-up measures as outcomes in linear multivariable mixed models including the clusters as random effects. The mediating psychosocial determinants of the interventions will be assessed in multiple mediation models. Results: The study was conducted from 2020 to 2021—baseline interviews were conducted in October 2020, and the educational intervention was delivered in November 2020. The RANAS-based SMS text messages were developed based on the baseline data for relevant behavioral determinants of PPE use and sent between February 2021 and September 2021. Follow-up interviews were conducted in October 2021. Overall, 539 farmers were enrolled in the study at baseline; 8.3% (45/539) were lost to follow-up by the end of the study. Conclusions: This study will contribute to a better understanding of the effectiveness and behavior change mechanisms of educational interventions by using an experimental, cluster-randomized study design to improve pesticide handling among smallholder farmers. Trial Registration: International Standard Randomised Controlled Trial Number (ISRCTN) 18237656; https://doi.org/10.1186/ISRCTN18237656 International Registered Report Identifier (IRRID): DERR1-10.2196/55238

Daily carrying of heavy loads of domestic water, especially during pregnancy and postpartum, bears a threat to maternal health in low‐income countries. Using an extended health action process approach (HAPA), we examined women's reasons for and psychosocial determinants of safe water‐carrying during pregnancy and postpartum. In a mixed‐methods study, trained local interviewers conducted 1001 quantitative interviews with women of reproductive age ( n = 921 analyzed) and 21 qualitative interviews with women of reproductive age, in‐laws, and spouses in rural Nepal. We analyzed the quantitative data with generalized estimating equations to model the HAPA‐based psychosocial determinants of avoiding water‐carrying during pregnancy and postpartum. Subjective perspectives were investigated with thematic analysis. Outcome expectancies ( B = 0.24), self‐efficacy ( B = 0.20), and injunctive norms ( B = 0.23) were significantly associated with the intention to avoid water‐carrying. Self‐efficacy ( B = 0.36) and instrumental support ( B = 0.05) are related to behavior (all p < 0.05). Women explained water‐carrying during pregnancy by a lack of family support, a shift of health decision‐making power to in‐laws, and low behavioral control. Overall, the necessity of water, family decision‐making structures, and low support make it difficult for women to discontinue water‐carrying. Additionally to infrastructural improvements, behavioral interventions may increase women's self‐efficacy for safe water‐carrying (e.g. reducing weight) and social support.

Unsafe sanitation practices can severely affect public health. Strengthening psychological ownership, the feeling of owning an object (e.g. the latrine) individually or collectively, may promote safe sanitation practices, e.g. decreased open defecation. This study investigated psychological ownership in communities that participated in a sanitation intervention. We used follow-up survey data of a cluster-randomised controlled trial in rural Ghana (N = 2012 households), which assessed psychological ownership, and safe sanitation outcomes. The data were analysed using multilevel modelling and generalised estimating equations. In line with our assumptions, greater psychological ownership for the latrine related to decreased open defecation. Higher individual psychological ownership for the open defecation space related to safe sanitation outcomes, whereas collective ownership related to lesser safe sanitation. The present study shows that the concept of psychological ownership may play an important role in safe sanitation. Collective and individual psychological ownership seem to distinctly relate to safe sanitation outcomes, which has high relevance for promoting communities’ health behaviour.