Table 1.
Characteristics of the three groups compared at baseline*
| Phone group (n = 200) | Longitudinal control group (n = 100) | Cross-sectional control group (n = 449) | P-value | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Number of children <5 y old to a mother: |
0.74 |
|||
| 1 |
87 (43.5%) |
50 (50%) |
220 (49%) |
|
| 2 |
104 (52%) |
46 (46%) |
209 (46.5%) |
|
| 3 |
9 (4.5%) |
4 (4%) |
20 (4.5%) |
|
| Median maternal age [Median (IQR)], n* |
25 (23-27), n = 194 |
25 (23-27), n = 99 |
25 (23-27), n = 442 |
0.96 |
| Mother ever attended school (%) |
193/193 (100%) |
98/99 (99%) |
436/442 (99%) |
0.27 |
| Completed years of maternal education (Median, IQR), n* |
10 (9-12), n = 192 |
10 (9-12), n = 98 |
10 (9-12), n = 433 |
0.12 |
| Mother’s occupation- agriculture (%) |
37/60 (62%) |
25/34 (74%) |
94/134 (70%) |
0.35 |
| Father’s age (Median IQR), n* |
30 (28-32), n = 193 |
30 (28-32), n = 98 |
30 (28-32), n = 437 |
0.88 |
| Father’s completed years of education, Median (IQR), n* |
12 (10-13), n = 189 |
10 (9-12), n = 97 |
11 (9-13), n = 432 |
0.26 |
| Father’s occupation |
0.10 |
|||
| Agriculture (%) |
30/188 (16%) |
12/98 (12%) |
94/429 (22%) |
0.10 |
| Manufacturing (%) |
91/188 (48%) |
56/98 (57%) |
202/429 (47%) |
|
| Any mobile phone ownership in household |
196/197 (99.5%) |
98/98 (100%) |
442/446 (99.1%) |
1.00 |
| Smartphone ownership in household |
133/193 (68.9%) |
45/98 (45.9%) |
245/431 (56.8%) |
0.0004 |
| Household wealth quintile: |
0.016 |
|||
| 1 |
29 (15%) |
20 (20%) |
101 (22%) |
|
| 2 |
36 (18%) |
17 (17%) |
97 (22%) |
|
| 3 |
45 (23%) |
22 (22%) |
83 (18%) |
|
| 4 |
49 (25%) |
24 (24%) |
77 (17%) |
|
| 5 |
41 (21%) |
17 (17%) |
91 (20%) |
|
| Religion of head of household- Hindu | 184/199 (92%) | 88/99 (89%) | 410/448 (92%) | 0.30 |
y – years, IQR – interquartile range
*Where there are missing data, the number of respondents have been given.