An entertainment-education radio soap opera introduced in Tanzania in 1993 was evaluated by means of a field experimental design in which the radio program was broadcast by seven mainland stations of Radio Tanzania. An eighth station broadcast alternative programming from 1993 to 1995, its listenership serving as a comparison area in which contemporaneous changes in family planning adoption were measured. The soap opera was subsequently broadcast nationwide from 1995 to 1997. Data about the effects of the radio soap opera were gathered in five annual surveys of about 2,750 households in the comparison and the treatment areas and from a sample of new family planning adopters in 79 health clinics. The soap opera had strong behavioral effects on family planning adoption; it increased listeners' self-efficacy regarding family planning adoption and influenced listeners to talk with their spouses and peers about contraception.
PIP: This article evaluates the effects of an entertainment-education radio soap opera, "Twende na Wakati" (Let's Go with the Time), introduced in Tanzania in 1993 on the adoption of family planning methods. The soap opera was evaluated by means of a large-scale field experimental design in which the radio program was broadcast in seven mainland stations. An eight-station broadcast was added from 1993 to 1995 and its listenership served as the basis in which contemporaneous changes in planning adoption were measured. Subsequently, the soap opera was broadcast nationwide from 1995 to 1997. In determining the effect of the soap opera, five annual surveys were conducted. Included in the survey were about 2750 households in the comparison and the treatment areas and from a sample of family planning adopter in 79 health clinics. Results of the survey indicate that the soap opera had strong behavioral effects on family planning adoption. Additionally, the incidence increases listeners' self-efficacy regarding family planning adoption and influences listeners to talk with their spouses and peers about contraception.