Tools- of Changes

The Relationship Between Cash-Based Interventions and Violence: A Systematic Review and Evidence Map

This comprehensive systematic review found strong and very strong evidence that cash-based interventions reduced transactional and age-disparate sex among girls; suicide; IPV victimisation; physical, emotional and sexual IPV; and physical child maltreatment.

• The authors searched studies assessing the relationship between cash-based incentives with violence outcomes at PubMed, EMBASE, Global Health and LILACS from the database's creation until July 12th, 2023. 
• They evaluated the relationship of cash-based incentives on five types of violence outcome: intimate partner violence (IPV), child maltreatment, suicide, youth violence, and general violence.
• They grouped cash-based incentives into Conditional Cash Transfer (CCT), Unconditional Cash Transfer (CCT), cash in combination with interventions other than cash(cash+), tax credits, cash for work and start-up grants.
• They classified the strength of evidence according to the study design and quality.
• They found strong and very strong evidence that cash-based interventions reduced transactional and age-disparate sex among girls, suicide, IPV victimisation, physical, emotional and sexual IPV, and physical child maltreatment.
• They found moderate or limited evidence in many cases, however. The evidence map indicated research gaps on the effect of cash+ and cash for work on suicide and general violence, tax credit on general violence and start-up grants on child maltreatment, suicide, and general violence.