Between October 2020 and March 2021, 494 caregiver–child dyads were randomly assigned to the intervention (n = 248) or waitlist control (n = 246) group. Intervention group caregivers reported significantly higher levels of responsive caregiving (OR = 2.55, 95% CI: 1.15–5.66, p = 0.02), increased time spent reading or looking at books (β = 0.45, p = 0.04), and more storytelling (β = 0.72, p = 0.002). Additionally, intervention caregivers reported significantly lower symptoms of depression (β = −0.64, p = 0.05) and anxiety (β = −0.65, p = 0.02). Child development and parental stress did not differ significantly between the groups.
Digital parenting interventions delivered through WhatsApp demonstrated effectiveness in promoting responsive caregiving and enhancing caregiver mental health in low-resource settings, suggesting significant potential for scalability.
