Social and Behavior Change Research Agenda: Findings from a Rapid Desk Review and Stakeholder Engagement

USAID’s Water, Sanitation, and Hygiene Partnerships and Learning for Sustainability (WASHPaLS) #2 project seeks to enhance global learning and adoption of the evidence-based development programming needed to achieve United Nations Sustainable Development Goal 6.2. WASHPaLS #2 global research focuses on three themes: area-wide sanitation, market-based sanitation, and social and behavior change (SBC) to promote hygienic behaviors and environments.

Within the theme of hygienic environments (HEs), SBC, and building on research undertaken by WASHPaLS between 2016 and 2021, WASHPaLS #2 set out to conduct research focused on interrupting contamination and transmission pathways that specifically threaten infants and young children’s (IYC’s) health and growth, concentrating on the following intervention areas:

• Improving the HE through (1) improved flooring inside and/or outside homes, (2) safe disposal of IYC feces, and (3) reducing IYC’s exposure to poultry and animal feces in the home setting;
• Nudging handwashing (HW) behaviors in the home setting; and
• Improving food hygiene (FH).

This report summarizes findings from a desk review and expert consultations undertaken in under WASHPaLS #2  to further define and shape the direction of the HE and SBC research, which resulted in adjustments to the proposed focus of the research. WASHPaLS #2 plans to conduct at least two research studies, one on HE and the second on the intersection between HW and FH.