Strengthening social capital in conflict areas by improving mental health – Evaluating the effects of a randomized controlled trial in northeastern Nigeria

War has profound consequences for societies, impacting social networks and the trust and norms of civic engagement that sustain them. However, existing studies offer conflicting results. Some find war exposure reduces social capital, while others conclude the opposite. These mixed results suggest there are nuances in the experience of such life-changing events that are not being considered. The research faces methodological challenges as well due to the lack of random assignment to war exposure and difficulties in collecting data before an event or constructing a control group. A potential explanation for these diverging results is that war exposure increases the need to cooperate but also degrades mental health, which impairs social functioning. Those that are psychologically resilient, however, more readily cooperate in the face of common challenges, increasing their social capital. We aim to implement a brief, low-cost, and validated psychosocial intervention in Borno State, Nigeria – a region highly susceptible to attacks by Boko Haram. We test its effectiveness in improving mental health and social capital by conducting a rigorous Randomized Control Trial, and gathering extensive longitudinal data. We aim to make a multidisciplinary contribution to knowledge on war exposure, mental health and social cooperation in war contexts, and to create an inroad for the development of mental-health approaches to fostering community resilience during war and its aftermath.