Effectiveness of Social Media-Based Intervention in Intention Change of Adolescents for Promoting Sexual Health Behavior in Western Terai of Nepal
Key Social Norms Take-aways: This study highlights how social media-based health education interventions can positively shape adolescents perceived social norms related to sexual health behaviors. Although perceptions of other’s feelings towards a behavior (coined as subjective norms) were not the strongest predictors of behavioral intention, the intervention fostered a greater sense of peer approval and […]
Combination prevention package of interventions for reducing vulnerability to HIV among adolescent girls and young women in Nigeria: An action research
Key Social Norms Take-aways: This study demonstrates that interventions co-designed with communities can shift entrenched social norms that heighten adolescent girls’ and young women’s vulnerability to HIV. Parental silence around sexuality, peer silence about safer sex, and stigma associated with condom access were actively challenged through tailored, participatory activities. Interventions that enabled parents to discuss […]
Evaluation of a male engagement intervention to transform gender norms and improve family planning and HIV service uptake in Kabale, Uganda
Key Social Norms Take-aways: This study highlights the difficulty of transforming entrenched gender norms through short-duration, community-based interventions without adequately trained facilitators. Although some improvements were observed in men’s health-seeking behaviors, meaningful changes in gender attitudes were minimal. The findings underscore that deeply held cultural beliefs are resistant to change, especially when interventions are not […]
Increasing literate and illiterate women’s met need for contraception via empowerment: a quasi-experiment in rural India.
Key Social Norms Take-aways: This study highlights that addressing gender norms within households—especially around women’s mobility and control over earnings—can empower women and increase their ability to meet contraceptive needs. Outreach visits that included messages about gender dynamics were more effective at shifting norms than clinic-based interactions alone. Programs that aim to improve family planning […]
Transforming the attitudes of young men about gender roles and the acceptability of violence against women, Bihar.
Key Social Norms Take-aways: The study shows that gender-transformative interventions targeting rural, out-of-school young men can shift harmful norms around masculinity and gender-based violence. Changes were especially strong among boys who regularly attended sessions. Critically, the program worked not just by changing individual attitudes but by influencing what young men believed their peers respected, suggesting […]
The media or the message? Experimental evidence on mass media and modern contraception uptake in Burkina Faso
Key Social Norms Take-aways: While the study does not frame its analysis using formal social norms theory or terminology, it implicitly engages with normative influences—particularly descriptive norms—through its mass media intervention. The radio program aimed to shift perceptions of contraceptive use by portraying it as common, accepted, and beneficial. Results suggest that exposure to the […]
Using Social Media to Change Gender Norms: An Experiment within Facebook Messenger in India
Key Social Norms Take-aways: This evaluation affirms that social media can be powerful vehicles for shifting social norms around gender and violence against women in India. The format of media content critically shaped outcomes. A fictional, humorous series led to meaningful reductions in harmful gender norms and increased empathy toward survivors, while a documentary format […]
Marketing Gender Norms: A Social Media Experiment in India
Key Social Norms Take-aways: This study shows that digital platforms like Facebook Messenger can be leveraged to shift social norms around gender and violence against women. Format matters: a fictional, humorous video series reduced regressive gender attitudes and acceptance of violence against women, while a documentary format was more effective in motivating public action. Subtle, […]
Challenges in Changing Social Norms: Evidence from Interventions Targeting Child Marriage in Ethiopia
Key Social Norms Take-Aways: This study underscores that changing social norms is possible but complex. Interventions prompted discussion and shifted some attitudes but also deepened divisions. Gender and power hierarchies remained largely intact, and future programs must anticipate resistance and support collective norm change. Objectives: This study evaluated whether social norms interventions and economic incentives […]
Results from a cluster-randomized trial to evaluate a microfinance and peer health leadership intervention to prevent HIV and intimate partner violence among social networks of Tanzanian men.
Key Social Norms Take-aways: The study shows that shifting men’s attitudes around gender norms is possible through peer-led interventions, but changing behaviors tied to power, masculinity, and violence demands deeper, sustained engagement. Effective interventions must focus not only on individual beliefs but also on the community and relational dynamics that reinforce harmful practices. Objectives: This […]