Transforming the attitudes of young men about gender roles and the acceptability of violence against women, Bihar.
Key Social Norms Take-aways: The study shows that gender-transformative interventions targeting rural, out-of-school young men can shift harmful norms around masculinity and gender-based violence. Changes were especially strong among boys who regularly attended sessions. Critically, the program worked not just by changing individual attitudes but by influencing what young men believed their peers respected, suggesting […]
Transforming Masculinities and Promoting Family Planning in Faith-based Communities: Midline Ethnography Report.
Key Social Norms Take-aways: The MFF (Masculinité, Famille, et Foi) midline ethnography demonstrates the central role of faith institutions in shaping and potentially transforming gender norms related to family planning (FP), gender-based violence (GBV), and masculinities in Kinshasa, DRC. While participants were generally receptive to MFF messages, many continued to interpret gender equality as complementary […]
Étude des effets de l’intervention de l’École des Maris sur les dynamiques de genre pour améliorer la santé reproductive au Niger
Key Social Norms Take-aways: This report explores the deeply rooted norms in Niger that limit women’s autonomy, particularly in decision-making around marriage, reproduction, and economic participation. Although there are many burdens associated with early and forced marriage, social norms and gender roles continue to pressure girls into early unions. Notably, while some community actors advocate […]
How does a Social and Behavioral Change Communication Intervention Predict Menstrual Health and Hygiene Management: A Cross-Sectional Study
Key Social Norms Take-aways: The GARIMA intervention reveals that breaking the culture of silence around menstruation can lead to improved menstrual health and hygiene management when social and behavioral change communication is grounded in interpersonal and community dialogue. The intervention successfully shifted gender norms and increased interpersonal communication, which were key mediators of improved menstrual […]
Enabling Girls to Advance Gender Equity (ENGAGE) Report on the Midline Evaluation Results August 2019
Key Social Norms Take-aways: The ENGAGE program illustrates that social norms—particularly those around adolescent sexuality, contraception use, child marriage, and girls’ roles in decision-making—are deeply embedded in community beliefs and practices in Southern Malawi. While norms supporting child marriage are weakening, entrenched stigma remains around girls’ sexual activity and contraceptive use, especially among unmarried girls. […]
Changing Social Norms: the Importance of “Organized Diffusion” for Scaling Up Community Health Promotion and Women Empowerment Interventions.
Key Social Norms Take-aways: This article highlights the importance of “organized diffusion”—the process by which intervention participants intentionally share what they have learned with others in their networks—as a cost-effective strategy for promoting social norms change. Organized diffusion can amplify the reach and sustainability of community-based interventions by transforming both personal attitudes and collective norms, […]
Effectiveness of the Communities Care programme on change in social norms associated with gender-based violence (GBV) with residents in intervention compared with control districts in Mogadishu, Somalia
Key Social Norms Take-aways: The evaluation of the Communities Care program in Somalia offers rigorous evidence that collective reflection and community-driven action, rather than individual attitude change alone, can influence social norms around violence, family honor, and male entitlement. It also provides a validated social norms measurement tool that can be used in future violence […]
“Change Really Does Need to Start From Home”: Impact of an Intimate Partner Violence Prevention Strategy Among Married Couples in Nepal
Key Social Norms Take-aways: The Change Starts at Home program shows that gender-transformative interventions can effectively disrupt harmful social norms that underpin intimate partner violence in patriarchal settings. Key shifts were observed in men’s attitudes and behaviors regarding alcohol use, household responsibilities, spousal communication, and sexual consent. The program’s success stemmed from creating safe, gender-segregated […]
Small small quarrels bring about happiness or love in the relationships’: Exploring community perceptions and gendered norms contributing to male perpetrated intimate partner violence in the Central Region of Ghana.
Key Social Norms Take-aways: Community norms often uphold male authority and justify IPV. However, resistance from individuals and local leaders shows that change is possible. Interventions should support these shifts by promoting dialogue and empowering women. Objectives: This study explored how gender norms and community attitudes in Ghana’s Central Region contribute to male-perpetrated intimate partner […]
Stigma as a barrier to family planning use among married youth in Ethiopia
Key Social Norms Take-aways: Anticipated stigma—driven by social norms around gender, fertility, and youth behavior—emerges as a significant barrier to family planning (FP) use among married youth in Ethiopia. Community expectations that young brides should prove their fertility, along with fears of judgment from providers, family, and community members, create an environment where seeking FP […]