Key Social Norms Take-aways Social norms around maternal health, sanitation, and reporting sexual abuse in Mozambique remain resistant to change, with community norms often not aligned with the behaviors promoted by the intervention. Although audiences engaged deeply with the radio drama’s characters and stories, indicating strong narrative persuasion, prevailing social norms continued to favor inaction or silence. This suggests that narrative engagement alone may not be sufficient to shift norms unless paired with broader structural and community reinforcement.
Objectives The study aimed to examine the relationship between exposure to an entertainment-education radio drama, Ouro Negro, and narrative persuasion, and whether narrative persuasion is associated with changes in social norms related to maternal health, sanitation, and child protection.
Methods The study used mixed methods, drawing from a midline evaluation of the Ouro Negro program in Mozambique. Quantitative data were collected through a panel survey of 1,910 women aged 15–34, and qualitative data came from 30 focus group discussions with women and girls. The analysis employed multivariate regression, factor analysis, and propensity score matching to assess associations between exposure, narrative persuasion, and social norms. Participatory storytelling and 2×2 normative mapping activities were also used in focus groups to assess narrative engagement and perceived social norms.
Intervention Details Ouro Negro is a Portuguese-language radio drama produced by UNICEF Mozambique, designed to promote maternal and child health and social change. Airing twice weekly, it embeds educational messages drawn from the Facts for Life health guide into a fictional storyline set in a rural village. Targeting primarily women aged 15–34, the drama addresses health behaviors such as institutional delivery, sanitation, and reporting abuse, using a mix of traditional and modern character arcs to encourage discussion and reflection.
Results Exposure to Ouro Negro significantly predicted all three narrative persuasion constructs—character identification, transportation, and engagement. However, narrative persuasion was not significantly associated with changes in social norms, and no significant differences were found in perceptions of benefits, sanctions, or descriptive norms between exposed and control groups. Focus group findings supported these results, showing participants related to characters and stories but also revealing that the promoted behaviors were not yet normative within their communities.
Conclusions Narrative engagement through entertainment-education can enhance audience connection and storytelling resonance but may not be enough to shift deep-rooted social norms in the short term. While participants empathized with characters and internalized messages, normative behavior changes were limited. This highlights the need for longer-term, multi-pronged interventions that couple narrative tools with broader community mobilization and reinforcement to influence social norms effectively.