Barriers to contraceptive use in humanitarian settings: Experiences of South Sudanese refugee women living in Adjumani district, Uganda; an exploratory qualitative study
Key Social Norms Take-aways: This study reveals how deeply rooted patriarchal and cultural norms among South Sudanese refugee communities in Uganda severely restrict women’s and girls’ contraceptive autonomy. Social norms idealize large families, associate contraception with promiscuity, and reinforce male dominance in reproductive decision-making. Fear of community backlash, intimate partner violence, and the loss of […]
Beyond Individual-Level Theorizing in Social Norms Research: How Collective Norms and Media Access Affect Adolescents’ Use of Contraception
Key Social Norms Take-aways: The study emphasizes that interventions aiming to improve adolescent contraceptive use should not only target individuals but also consider the broader collective norms of their communities. Programs should assess both the strength of local norms and the level of media access when designing strategies. Media campaigns may be especially powerful in […]
Centering female agency while investigating contraceptive use: A case study in Agincourt, South Africa
Key Social Norms Take-aways: This study illustrates how young women in rural South Africa navigate deeply embedded social norms surrounding premarital fertility, contraceptive use, and abortion. While community norms stigmatize adolescent sexual activity and pregnancy, women demonstrate significant agency in managing their reproductive health. Contraceptive use is framed as a personal responsibility, often requiring young […]
Attitudes, Norms, and Self-Efficacy: Examining Socio-Cognitive Correlates and Sexual Abstinence Among Ugandan Youth Ages 16–18 years, in the Slums of Kampala, Uganda
Key Social Norms Take-aways: The findings underscore the powerful role of peer and parental norms in shaping sexual behavior among Ugandan youth. Programs aiming to delay sexual initiation must go beyond providing knowledge; they should also address the social pressures and normative environments influencing young people’s choices, helping adolescents develop confidence and strategies to navigate […]
Bad girl and unmet family planning need among Sub-Saharan African adolescents: the role of sexual and reproductive health stigma
Key Social Norms Take-aways: Gendered social norms that shame adolescent girls for being sexually active are central to the stigma they face. These norms create major barriers to accessing family planning and must be directly challenged through stigma-reduction strategies. Objectives: This study examined how sexual and reproductive health (SRH) stigma affects adolescent girls’ ability to […]
Barriers to accessing maternal health care amongst pregnant adolescents in South Africa: a qualitative study
Key Social Norms Take-aways: This study demonstrates how entrenched social norms surrounding adolescent sexuality and gender roles in South Africa create significant barriers to accessing maternal health care for pregnant adolescents. Norms that frame adolescent pregnancy as shameful and deviant—particularly outside of marriage—generate fear, guilt, and stigma, which young women internalize. These norms are reinforced […]
Approaches to Regulating Adolescent Sexual Behavior in Ghana: Qualitative Evidence from Somanya and Adidome
Key Social Norms Take-aways: The study highlights how collective community norms — especially informal surveillance and shared social responsibility — play a key role in delaying adolescent sexual behavior. In Adidome, strong communal norms and active neighborhood monitoring contributed to lower HIV rates, while in Somanya, weakened cultural practices and lower community cohesion were linked […]
Association of collective attitudes and contraceptive practice in nine sub-Saharan African countries
Key Social Norms Take-aways: Community-level gender norms—specifically permissive attitudes toward premarital sex and accepting attitudes toward wife-beating—significantly influence contraceptive use and demand satisfaction among women in sub-Saharan Africa. Permissive norms are associated with greater contraceptive use, while norms accepting wife-beating are linked to lower use. Addressing these norms is key to improving reproductive health outcomes. […]
An exploration of gender-based violence in eastern Myanmar in the context of political transition: findings from a qualitative sexual and reproductive health assessment.
Key Social Norms Take-aways: This study highlights the persistent and deeply embedded gender norms in eastern Myanmar that sustain gender-based violence (GBV) and limit women’s and girls’ sexual and reproductive health (SRH) rights, despite political transitions. Norms surrounding male dominance, early marriage, domestic violence, and restrictions on adolescent girls’ access to SRH services were consistently […]
Applying a gender lens to social norms, couple communication and decision making to increase modern contraceptive use in Ethiopia, a mixed methods study
Key Social Norms Take-aways: This study shows that community-based interventions targeting young men can shift harmful gender norms and reduce intimate partner violence (IPV). At baseline, participants across all three study arms expressed substantial support for inequitable norms. For example, 58% agreed that a woman should tolerate violence to keep her family together, and half […]