Marital control, domestic violence justification, and mental health: a study of married women in Bangladesh
Key Social Norms Take-aways: The study demonstrates that social norms—particularly the justification and normalization of domestic violence and patriarchal control—are deeply embedded drivers of women’s mental health outcomes in Bangladesh. Norms that legitimize male authority and accept wife-beating under specific circumstances contribute to the internalization of abuse, reinforcing gender inequality and limiting women’s autonomy. The […]
Overcoming structural violence through community-based safe-spaces: Qualitative insights from young women on oral HIV pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP) in Kisumu, Kenya.
Key Social Norms Take-aways: Social norms—particularly those related to gender roles, stigma around HIV and PrEP, and expectations governing young women’s behavior—are deeply embedded within broader systems of structural violence and significantly shape access to HIV prevention services. The study highlights that norms around female respectability, sexuality, and obedience, as well as stigma linking PrEP […]
Gender norms in sexual and reproductive health and rights: insights from young Angolan women and the development of a context-specific questionnaire (2021-2022).
Key Social Norms Take-aways: Gender norms are central to shaping young women’s sexual and reproductive health and rights (SRHR) in Angola, operating through socially shared expectations around education, autonomy, relationships, and reproduction. The study highlights that norms are unevenly supported across domains and geographies, with stronger acceptance of education and relational autonomy but weaker support […]
Exploring relationship pathways to prevent intimate partner violence among young women in Malawi.
Key Social Norms Take-aways: Social norms—particularly those related to masculinity, male provision, women’s gender roles, and sexual expectations—play a central role in shaping relationship dynamics and intimate partner violence (IPV) among young women in Malawi. The study highlights that IPV is often triggered when men perceive threats to their socially expected roles (e.g., being questioned […]
“The child of your fellow is your child”: Building on existing protective norms to engage men as caregivers; qualitative findings from an exploratory evaluation of an edutainment intervention to prevent age-disparate transactional sex
Key Social Norms Take-aways: Social norms—particularly those related to gender roles, masculinity, caregiving, and community responsibility—can be effectively shifted by building on existing positive and protective norms rather than introducing entirely new ones. The discussion emphasizes that norms positioning men primarily as financial providers can be expanded to include emotional engagement, caregiving, and active involvement […]
Assessing the application of adapted theory of planned behaviour in predicting postpartum family planning intentions in a pragmatic randomized control trial in Western Kenya
Key Social Norms Take-aways: Social norms—captured as perceived normative beliefs and partner/community expectations—are a central driver of postpartum family planning (PPFP) intentions. The study shows that women are more likely to intend to use PPFP when they perceive approval and support from significant others (e.g., partners, family, providers). Normative beliefs operate alongside attitudes and perceived […]
Validating measurement of social norms for entertainment-education: a five-factor model
Key Social Norms Take-aways: Social norms are multi-dimensional constructs that must be measured across distinct but related domains—descriptive norms, injunctive norms, and outcome expectations—to fully capture how they influence behavior. The study underscores that norms are not a single unified concept but operate through different pathways, including perceptions of what others do, what others approve […]
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 […]
Motivations for Starting and Stopping PrEP: Experiences of Adolescent Girls and Young Women in the HPTN 082 Trial
Key Social Norms Take-aways: Social norms—particularly those related to gender, sexuality, and HIV stigma—are central to adolescent girls’ and young women’s (AGYW) decision-making around PrEP use, often outweighing individual risk perceptions. The discussion emphasizes that norms such as expectations of male infidelity, acceptance of condomless sex in relationships, stigma linking PrEP to HIV infection or […]
HIV Testing Uptake in a Sexual and Reproductive Health Service for Youth and Impact on Population-Level Prevalence of Undiagnosed HIV in Zimbabwe.
Key Social Norms Take-aways: Social norms—particularly those related to gender, sexual behavior, and violence—operate as important community-level determinants of HIV outcomes among youth, influencing both access to testing and the likelihood of remaining undiagnosed. The discussion highlights that harmful norms, including stigma around HIV and sexual activity and norms tolerating violence against women, can discourage […]