Effect of Non-formal Experiential Education on Personal Agency of Adolescent Girls in Tajikistan: Findings from a Randomized Experimental Study

Introduction: Despite the claim of non-formal experiential education enhancing agency among youth, few studies offer robust evidence. Drawing from the capability approach, social cognitive theory, and experiential learning theory, we present the first experimental study in Central Asia testing the effect of experiential educational program on adolescent girls’ personal agency, including self-efficacy, future orientation, and locus of control. Methods: We ran multilevel random-intercept mixed-effects models using the repeated measures data collected from 1221 school-going adolescent girls within the cluster-randomized experimental study conducted in 60 public schools in Tajikistan. Results: We found significant positive effect of intervention on girls’ future planning (OR = 2.82; 95% CI = from 1.85 to 4.3; p < 0.001) and locus of control (B = − 2.55, 95% CI = from − 3.9 to − 1.2, p < 0.001), but no effect on their self-efficacy. We also found significant intervention effect on adolescents’ attitudes towards saving, financial behavior, and some indicators of health knowledge. Conclusions: Our study contributes to the global youth development agenda by suggesting that, while non-formal experiential educational programs may have some effect on adolescents’ psychosocial outcomes, integrated interventions involving all components of young person’s ecosystem (i.e., family, school, community) might be more effective in affecting youth agency.