Participants
6,000 female garment workers socially connected to 2,000 primary study participants in Bangalore, India.
Study Design
Randomized Controlled Trial evaluating indirect social network spillover effects among untargeted peers.
Results
6,000 connected peers were enrolled and tracked alongside 2,000 primary participants, with empirical spillover results forthcoming.
When to use
Evaluating workplace interventions solely on primary participants misses the broader social impact across the organization. Peer interactions spread habits, emotional support, and behavioral changes to unmanaged colleagues. This method tracks unmanaged social contacts alongside direct program participants to measure network spillover effects.
How
Enroll and track socially connected peers of primary program participants to quantify indirect social network spillover effects. 1. Identify female garment workers who have pre-existing social connections with primary program participants at the start of the intervention. 2. Select 6,000 socially connected peer workers across factory sites. 3. Survey connected peers alongside primary study participants to baseline their social network connections and mental health status. 4. Administer follow-up evaluations to track indirect changes in mental health, social capital, and labor outcomes among connected peers over time.
Why it works
Tracking connected peers measures how social interventions diffuse beyond direct recipients to influence the broader workplace community. Evaluating network spillovers prevents underestimating total program impact on workplace culture and employee retention.
Example
Researchers enrolled 6,000 workers socially connected to primary study participants at Shahi Exports in Bangalore, India, to evaluate indirect intervention spillovers.
Source and citation
See source →Read alongside the research
Plain-English glossary
Original explanations, informed by the references below. Examples are illustrations, not data from the studies above. The research text stays unchanged.
- Follow-up
Collecting more information about participants later in a study to see what has happened to them. The term can also mean the length of time researchers keep track of them.
ExampleResearchers interview the same workers three months after a programme ends. That later interview is a follow-up.
GET-IT glossary · Follow-up ↗Read more about follow-up →- Baseline
The starting measurements in a study. Researchers use these to compare what participants were like at the start with what happens later.
ExampleBefore a training programme starts, researchers measure workers’ earnings. That first measurement is the baseline.
GET-IT glossary · Baseline characteristics ↗Read more about baseline →- Randomized controlled trial
A study that uses chance, like drawing lots, to decide who receives each option being compared. Researchers compare the groups’ outcomes to estimate the effect of those options.
ExampleA lottery assigns volunteers to a training programme or a comparison group. Researchers then compare their outcomes.
GET-IT glossary · Randomized study ↗Read more about randomized controlled trial →