How conditional cash payments affect young people's mental health in Brazil
Official title: The impact of social drivers, conditional cash transfers and their mechanisms on mental health of the young: an integrated retrospective and forecasting approach using the 100 million Brazilian Cohort
Funded at Fundacao Oswaldo Cruz · NIH-11234321 · Data updated 2026-11-12
This project looks at whether Brazil's Bolsa Família cash payments are linked to fewer serious mental-health hospitalizations and suicides among children, teens, and young adults.
Quick facts
| Grant type | R01 grant |
|---|---|
| Study type | NIH-funded research |
| Funding institution | Fundacao Oswaldo Cruz NIH-funded |
| Lab location | 1 site (Rio de Janeiro, BRAZIL) |
| Project start | December 9, 2021 |
| Project end | October 31, 2026 |
| Funding year | 2026 |
| Award (this year) | $453,197 |
| NIH project number | 5R01MH128911-05 |
| Project ID | NIH-11234321 on NIH RePORTER |
Who could benefit from this research
✓Could help
Children, adolescents, and young adults in Brazil who were eligible for or received Bolsa Família cash transfers, especially those from low-income households, are the focus of this work.
✕Less likely to help
People who live outside Brazil, are not recorded in the national administrative databases, or whose mental-health problems stem from causes unrelated to socioeconomic conditions are unlikely to be directly affected by these findings.
What this research studies
If I'm a child, teen, or young adult in Brazil, researchers will use national records to compare mental-health hospital visits and suicide rates for people who did or did not receive Bolsa Família cash payments. They will use strong statistical methods to make fair comparisons across large groups and to mimic randomized comparisons where possible. The team will also test likely pathways, such as increased school attendance, reduced alcohol use, or lower family violence, that might explain any mental-health benefits. The work uses the linked 100 Million Brazilian Cohort to cover people across Brazil over many years.
Why it matters
Potential benefit: If successful, this work could show that cash-transfer policies reduce severe mental-health crises and suicide in young people and guide public programs to protect youth mental health.
How similar studies have gone: Previous studies have shown cash transfers can improve schooling and reduce alcohol use and family violence, but evidence specifically linking them to fewer youth suicides and severe mental-health hospitalizations is limited and mixed.
Where this research is happening
-
Fundacao Oswaldo Cruz
Rio de Janeiro, Brazil Active
Researchers
- Principal investigator: Machado, Daiane Borges — Fundacao Oswaldo Cruz
- Study coordinator: Machado, Daiane Borges
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About this research
- This is an active NIH-funded research project — typically early-stage science, not a clinical trial accepting patient enrollment.
- Some NIH-funded labs run parallel clinical studies or seek volunteers for related work. To check, contact the principal investigator or institution listed above.
- For full project details, budget, and progress reports, visit the official NIH RePORTER page.