The Effects of Informational Interventions on Household Water Management, Hygiene Behaviors, Stored Drinking Water Quality, and Hand Contamination in Peri-Urban Tanzania

Jennifer Davis Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering, Stanford University, Stanford, California; Woods Institute for the Environment, Stanford University, Stanford, California; Emmett Interdisciplinary Program in Environment and Resources, Stanford University, Stanford, California; Human Biology Program, Stanford University, Stanford, California; Department of Environmental and Occupational Health, Muhimbili University of Health and Allied Sciences, Dar es Salaam, Tanzania

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Amy J. Pickering Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering, Stanford University, Stanford, California; Woods Institute for the Environment, Stanford University, Stanford, California; Emmett Interdisciplinary Program in Environment and Resources, Stanford University, Stanford, California; Human Biology Program, Stanford University, Stanford, California; Department of Environmental and Occupational Health, Muhimbili University of Health and Allied Sciences, Dar es Salaam, Tanzania

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Kirsten Rogers Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering, Stanford University, Stanford, California; Woods Institute for the Environment, Stanford University, Stanford, California; Emmett Interdisciplinary Program in Environment and Resources, Stanford University, Stanford, California; Human Biology Program, Stanford University, Stanford, California; Department of Environmental and Occupational Health, Muhimbili University of Health and Allied Sciences, Dar es Salaam, Tanzania

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Simon Mamuya Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering, Stanford University, Stanford, California; Woods Institute for the Environment, Stanford University, Stanford, California; Emmett Interdisciplinary Program in Environment and Resources, Stanford University, Stanford, California; Human Biology Program, Stanford University, Stanford, California; Department of Environmental and Occupational Health, Muhimbili University of Health and Allied Sciences, Dar es Salaam, Tanzania

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Alexandria B. Boehm Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering, Stanford University, Stanford, California; Woods Institute for the Environment, Stanford University, Stanford, California; Emmett Interdisciplinary Program in Environment and Resources, Stanford University, Stanford, California; Human Biology Program, Stanford University, Stanford, California; Department of Environmental and Occupational Health, Muhimbili University of Health and Allied Sciences, Dar es Salaam, Tanzania

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Safe water storage and hand hygiene have been shown to reduce fecal contamination and improve health in experimental settings; however, triggering and sustaining such behaviors is challenging. This study investigates the extent to which personalized information about Escherichia coli contamination of stored water and hands influenced knowledge, reported behaviors, and subsequent contamination levels among 334 households with less than 5-year-old children in peri-urban Dar es Salaam, Tanzania. One-quarter of the study participants received information about strategies to reduce risk of water- and sanitation-related illness. Respondents in another three study cohorts received this same information, along with their household's water and/or hand-rinse test results. Findings from this study suggest that additional work is needed to elucidate the conditions under which such testing represents a cost-effective strategy to motivate improved household water management and hand hygiene.

Author Notes

*Address correspondence to Jennifer Davis, Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering and Woods Institute for the Environment, Stanford University, Stanford, CA 94305. E-mail: jennadavis@stanford.edu

Authors' addresses: Jennifer Davis, Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering and Woods Institute for the Environment, Stanford University, Stanford, CA, E-mail: jennadavis@stanford.edu. Amy J. Pickering, Emmett Interdisciplinary Program in Environment and Resources, Stanford University, Stanford, CA, E-mail: amyjanel@stanford.edu. Kirsten Rogers, Human Biology Program, Stanford University, Stanford, CA, E-mail: kirstenr@stanford.edu. Simon Mamuya, Department of Environmental and Occupational Health, Muhimbili University of Health and Allied Sciences, Dar es Salaam, Tanzania, E-mail: smamuya@muhas.ac.tz. Alexandria B. Boehm, Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering, Stanford University, Stanford, CA, E-mail: aboehm@stanford.edu.

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