Qualitative evaluation of the Saleema campaign to eliminate female genital mutilation and cutting in Sudan
Key Social Norms Take-aways: The Saleema campaign demonstrates how branding and health communication can be powerful tools to shift entrenched social norms—specifically those sustaining female genital mutilation (FGM) in Sudan. The campaign reframes being “uncut” as “Saleema,” meaning whole, healthy, and untouched, and promotes this identity through positive imagery and messaging. Despite widespread social stigma […]
Qualitative Examination of the Role and Influence of Mothers-in-Law on Young Married Couples’ Family Planning in Rural Maharashtra, India
Key Social Norms Take-aways: This study underscores the pervasive influence of mothers-in-law (MILs) on family planning (FP) behaviors among young married couples in rural Maharashtra, India. MILs reinforce entrenched gender and fertility norms, including expectations for early childbearing, son preference, and female sterilization after achieving desired family size. Although some MILs acknowledged generational shifts and […]
Quantitative Proxies for Social Norms: A Proposed Approach for Interrogating Clustering, Reference Groups, and Validity
Key Social Norms Take-aways: This article highlights the critical need to rigorously validate quantitative proxy measures of social norms, particularly in IPV research. It shows that norms around IPV, such as male dominance and the acceptability of violence, are best captured using group-level aggregates of men’s attitudes. Men’s social norms were more strongly aligned with […]
Restrictions on contraceptive services for unmarried youth: a qualitative study of providers beliefs and attitudes in India
Key Social Norms Take-aways: This study highlights how entrenched social norms stigmatizing premarital sex in India shape healthcare providers’ attitudes and behaviors toward unmarried youth seeking contraceptive services. Providers often internalize and reinforce these norms, leading to restricted access to sexual and reproductive health (SRH) services for unmarried adolescents. Even when legally permissible, many providers […]
Rethinking HIV-prevention for school-going young people based on current behaviour patterns.
Key Social Norms Take-aways: Perceived social norms—especially peer expectations around sexual activity—were the strongest predictors of risk behavior. Gender norms that promote male dominance and discourage condom use contribute to risky practices. The study underscores the need to reshape social norms through peer group interventions, gender-transformative education, and community-wide engagement, particularly involving caregivers. Sustainable change […]
Perceptions of peer contraceptive use and its influence on contraceptive method use and choice among young women and men in Kenya: a quantitative cross-sectional study
Key Social Norms Take-aways: The study demonstrates that young people’s contraceptive choices are highly influenced by what they believe their peers are doing. This peer influence appears strongest for condom use, but also extends to other methods among young women. Interventions that seek to improve contraceptive uptake among youth should include efforts to shift peer […]
Poverty, dowry and the ‘good match’: revisiting community perceptions and practices of child marriage in a rural setting in Bangladesh
Key Social Norms Take-aways: Despite widespread awareness of the harms of child marriage in Bangladesh, the practice persists due to deeply embedded social norms around gender roles, dowry, and family honor. The ideal of a “good match”—where the husband is older, more educated, and dominant—drives early marriage and reinforces female subservience. These norms are maintained […]
Predicting Primary and Secondary Abstinence Among Adolescent Boys and Girls in the Western Cape, South Africa
Key Social Norms Take-aways: Social norms are critical predictors of adolescents’ intentions to abstain from sex, particularly among those who have not yet initiated sexual activity. The study demonstrates that social norms supporting abstinence influence youth intentions more effectively than risk perception or knowledge alone. This suggests that interventions aiming to delay sexual debut should […]
Predictors of intention to use modern contraceptives among female senior secondary school students in the Kpando Municipality, Ghana
Key Social Norms Take-aways: This study highlights that even when social norms (such as parental or peer support) are weak or unsupportive, girls’ own sense of empowerment and perceived control plays a decisive role in shaping their reproductive intentions. Interventions should focus not only on shifting social norms but also on building young women’s self-efficacy […]
Processing gender: lived experiences of reproducing and transforming gender norms over the life course of young people in Northern Uganda.
Key Social Norms Take-aways: This study highlights that changing gender norms is not a straightforward process; it involves ongoing negotiation shaped by personal, social, and structural forces. Interventions that aim to shift harmful norms must engage families, peers, schools, and communities, while also empowering young people with knowledge, confidence, and supportive networks to challenge inequitable […]