The WHO Self-Help Plus (SH+) Group Counselling for Indian Women in Poverty

A pilot evaluation of the Self-Help Plus intervention to provide scalable, group-based counselling to poor women in India.

Project Introduction

The Self Help Plus (SH+) intervention, developed by the World Health Organization, is being piloted in Doddaballapur Taluk, Karnataka, through a rigorous evaluation led by DIA. Designed to help individuals manage stress, SH+ involves five weekly group sessions of 90–120 minutes each, facilitated through standardized audio-guided exercises followed by structured discussion. All materials were professionally translated into Kannada by a psychologist and translator engaged by DIA to ensure the intervention’s cultural and linguistic relevance for participants.

Partners

Researchers

Project Methodology

Intervention delivery was led by implementing partner Gramina Abyuday Seva Samsthe (GASS), while DIA managed every other aspect of the project — from obtaining permissions and translating materials to conducting screening, baseline surveys, facilitator training, and follow-up surveys. To date, the team has completed screening, baseline, intervention, and a first follow-up, and is now conducting booster sessions for a subset of participants alongside a second follow-up survey measuring sustained impact six months post-intervention. Recruiting women to commit to five consecutive weekly sessions was challenging given competing responsibilities such as work, childcare, and household duties, requiring flexible scheduling and repeated community engagement.

Impact

The intervention phase saw higher-than-anticipated participation, with many women expressing strong appreciation for the sessions and requesting additional offerings in their communities. Exit surveys highlighted SH+ as highly relevant, practical, and empowering for participants managing stress and psychological distress. Beyond immediate participant benefits, the project has contributed to local capacity building, training community-based facilitators to deliver structured mental health content using WHO protocols. Successful implementation across 55 villages has demonstrated a scalable model for community-based mental health programming in low-resource rural settings.

Documentation

This project is currently in progress, and will be updated with findings as results arise.

Similar Projects