Tackling the Triple Threat in Kenya: Factors Associated with Protection against HIV Risk, Gender-Based Violence, and Pregnancy among Adolescent Girls and Young Women
Outcomes: Child, Early, and Forced Marriage, Gender‑Based Violence, Sexual and Reproductive Health
View SourceKey Social Norms Take-aways Gender norms—specifically gender-equitable attitudes—play a central protective role in reducing multiple risks faced by adolescent girls and young women (AGYW), including intimate partner violence and adolescent pregnancy. When combined with supportive relational norms (parental monitoring) and structural conditions (food security), these factors act synergistically as “development accelerators,” highlighting that shifting norms alongside improving household environments can produce compounded benefits across health, safety, and socioeconomic outcomes.
Objectives The study aimed to examine how three potential protective factors—gender-equitable attitudes, food security, and parental monitoring—are associated with key outcomes related to the “triple threat” of HIV risk, gender-based violence, and adolescent pregnancy among AGYW in Kenya.
Methods The study used cross-sectional, nationally representative data from the 2018–2019 Kenya Violence Against Children & Youth Survey (VACS), including 1,344 AGYW aged 13–24. Multivariable logistic regression models assessed associations between the three protective factors and outcomes (IPV, sexual violence, HIV risk, adolescent pregnancy, child marriage, and school/work participation). Gender norms were measured using a composite indicator of gender-equitable attitudes derived from items adapted from the Gender Equitable Men (GEM) scale and attitudes toward IPV, capturing both injunctive norms and normative beliefs about gender roles and violence.
Results Gender-equitable attitudes were associated with lower odds of intimate partner violence (aOR 0.47) and adolescent pregnancy (aOR 0.58). Food security was linked to reduced adolescent pregnancy (aOR 0.57) and child marriage (aOR 0.51). High parental monitoring was associated with lower odds of IPV, sexual violence, adolescent pregnancy, and child marriage. Notably, combined exposure to all three protective factors showed substantially larger reductions in risk—for example, IPV (22.3% vs. 5.0%), sexual violence (20.4% vs. 6.0%), adolescent pregnancy (23.7% vs. 7.7%), and child marriage (10.0% vs. 1.6%).
Conclusions The findings demonstrate that gender norms, household conditions, and family dynamics jointly shape AGYW vulnerability to the triple threat. Interventions that promote gender-equitable attitudes, strengthen parental support, and improve food security can function as multi-sectoral “accelerators,” with combined approaches yielding greater impact than single-component strategies. Addressing entrenched gender norms alongside structural and relational factors is essential for achieving meaningful and scalable improvements in adolescent girls’ health and well-being.
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