Community-Based Mental Health Interventions for Elderly Women in Tamil Nadu

In collaboration with Tamil Nadu’s Department of Rural Development and Panchayat Raj, J-PAL South Asia is implementing a large-scale RCT to evaluate interventions aimed at improving the well-being of elderly women in rural Tamil Nadu. The two interventions, cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) and weekly group activities, have been shown to reduce depression and loneliness among elderly women. Through two sets of pilots conducted in 2024, both interventions have been adapted to be scalable and community-based, utilizing an existing cadre of local frontline government workers (Community Resource Persons, or CRPs) for delivery. The collaboration seeks to strengthen government capacity, provide actionable data on the interventions' impact, and assess their cost-effectiveness, with the goal of integrating them into long-term policy for elderly care in Tamil Nadu.