Drawing on diverse partnerships to identify, address, and measure context-specific gender norms: a case study from REAL Fathers Uganda
Key Social Norms Take-aways: The REAL Fathers case study demonstrates that gender norms should be identified and addressed as specific, locally grounded expectations rather than broad concepts of masculinity or gender inequality. Participatory research revealed meaningful regional differences in how norms are enforced, underscoring the importance of community involvement, local partnerships, and attention to reference […]
Explaining the attitude-behavior gap in adolescent sexual and reproductive health service utilization: A cognitive dissonance perspective from rural Uganda
Key Social Norms Take-aways: Adolescents’ favorable attitudes toward sexual and reproductive health services do not necessarily translate into use when stigma, anticipated judgment, misinformation, and peer influence reinforce non-use. The discussion emphasizes that social norms interact with psychological and structural barriers: fear of being labeled promiscuous or irresponsible can justify avoiding services, while reliance on […]
Barriers and facilitators to community-based, peer-led sexual and reproductive health intervention for adolescent girls and young women in northeastern Uganda: A qualitative study.
Key Social Norms Take-aways: Social norms are central to whether adolescent girls and young women can safely participate in sexual and reproductive health programs. Community expectations around adolescent sexuality, contraception, fertility, and early childbearing create anticipated social sanctions—including being labeled “spoilt” or sexually active—that can lead girls to self-censor and avoid services. These norms are […]
Contradictions in value systems, social norms, and the disconnect between expectations and reality of sexuality and contraceptive use among youth in Karamoja, Uganda.
Key Social Norms Take-aways: Young people in Karamoja navigate contradictory, gendered social norms that simultaneously restrict premarital sexuality while encouraging early marriage and, in some circumstances, legitimizing sexual violence as a pathway to marriage. Social sanctions, stigma, and misconceptions also discourage modern contraceptive and condom use. However, the study identifies potentially protective norms around child […]
Measuring social norms endorsement and normative influence on contraceptive use among youth (15-24) in northeastern Uganda.
Key Social Norms Take-aways: Social norms are strongly associated with contraceptive use among youth in Karamoja, Uganda, suggesting that improving access to contraceptive services alone may be insufficient. Supportive reproductive health norms and young people’s self-efficacy were the strongest drivers of contraceptive uptake, while restrictive gender expectations, contraceptive myths, harmful cultural practices, stigma, and punitive […]
Generalized structural equation modeling of intimate partner violence among married women in East Africa using population-based data.
Key Social Norms Take-aways: Attitudes accepting wife beating were strongly associated with all forms of intimate partner violence, pointing to deep-rooted patriarchal norms that can normalize violence within relationships. The discussion also suggests that traditional norms supporting intimate partner violence may contribute to greater sexual violence in rural areas and that women’s employment or increased […]
She Is a Guest in My House: Exploring the Barriers to Asset Development and Decision-Making Autonomy Among Young Women in Southern Uganda
Key Social Norms Takeaways: Deeply entrenched patriarchal social norms in Southern Uganda—reinforced through family systems, cultural expectations, and institutional practices—systematically restrict young women’s access to assets and decision-making power. Norms positioning women as dependent “guests” in their husbands’ homes and prioritizing men as providers and decision-makers shape both structural opportunities and individual agency. Critically, the […]
A longitudinal study examining how self-injection social norms are associated with contraceptive self-injectable interest and use in rural Uganda
Key Social Norms Take-aways: This study demonstrates that social norms specific to contraceptive self-injection play a measurable and influential role in shaping both women’s interest in and actual uptake of self-injectable contraception. Importantly, it shows that beyond awareness and access, supportive descriptive and injunctive norms are critical for enabling women to act on their preferences. […]
Misperception of Norms About Intimate Partner Violence as a Driver of Personal IPV Attitudes and Perpetration: A Population-Based Study of Men in Rural Uganda
Key Social Norms Take-aways: Misperceptions of social norms—specifically overestimating the extent to which other men endorse and perpetrate intimate partner violence (IPV)—play a critical role in sustaining harmful attitudes and behaviors. The discussion highlights that many men believe IPV is more socially accepted and more commonly practiced than it actually is, creating a false consensus […]
Enablers of and barriers to ART adherence among female sex workers in mid-western Uganda: a qualitative study
Key Social Norms Take-aways: Social norms—particularly subjective norms such as peer approval, social support, stigma, and expectations around disclosure—play a critical role in shaping antiretroviral therapy (ART) adherence among female sex workers (FSWs). The discussion highlights that supportive norms (e.g., encouragement from peers, seeing others adhere to ART, and acceptance following disclosure) can enable adherence, […]