‘Somali Women towards Economic Empowerment and Transformation’ (SWEET) Phase 3 Endline Evaluation Report
Key Social Norms Take-aways: While this study did not directly measure social norms, it provides evidence that media programming can shift gendered attitudes and challenge normative beliefs about women’s roles in the economy. Male listeners reported increased confidence in women’s business abilities and described changing views within peer groups about women’s rightful place being beyond […]
The Role of Gender Norms on Intimate Partner Violence Among Newly Married Adolescent Girls and Young Women in India: A Longitudinal Multilevel Analysis
Key Social Norms Take-aways: This study reveals a counterintuitive association between community-level gender norms and intimate partner violence (IPV) among newly married adolescent girls and young women (AGYW) in India. Researchers used two proxy measures of social norms: (1) a community-level equitable gender attitudes index—based on AGYW’s agreement with five statements about gender roles (e.g., […]
Understanding how social norms influence access to and utilization of adolescent sexual and reproductive health services in Northern Nigeria
Key Social Norms Take-aways: Social norms in Northern Nigeria strongly enforce early marriage, high fertility expectations, and male authority over reproductive decisions, significantly limiting adolescents’ access to and utilization of modern contraceptive services. Norms around chastity, family honor, and fertility not only stigmatize unmarried adolescents who seek contraception but also render married adolescents—especially girls—powerless to […]
The role of social norms on adolescent family planning in rural Kilifi county, Kenya
Key Social Norms Take-aways: This study reinforces that social norms are multi-layered and gendered. Among young women, especially those who are unmarried, affiliation with peers who use modern contraception can reduce stigma and encourage uptake. Programs should target not just individual beliefs, but also reshape community norms and leverage peer influence—particularly same-sex peer networks—to foster […]
The role of gender inequities in women’s access to reproductive health services: A population-level study of Simiyu Region, Tanzania
Key Social Norms Take-aways: This study underscores how entrenched gender norms in the Simiyu region of Tanzania severely restrict women’s and girls’ access to reproductive health services. Norms that prioritize male authority, devalue women’s autonomy, and equate female worth with childbirth reinforce systemic barriers to healthcare. Women face stigma and even violence for using family […]
The Role of Gender Norms in Shaping Adolescent Girls’ and Young Women’s Experiences of Pregnancy and Abortion in Mozambique
Key Social Norms Take-aways: The study emphasizes the need for gender-transformative approaches that do more than expand services—they must reshape the social and cultural context. Effective interventions should empower girls with knowledge and decision-making confidence, engage male partners and families as supportive allies, train healthcare providers to reduce stigma and bias, and implement whole-community initiatives […]
The role of partners, parents and friends in shaping young women’s reproductive choices in Peri-urban Nairobi: a qualitative study
Key Social Norms Take-aways: Social norms related to female sexuality, discretion, and male authority continue to heavily influence whether and how young women use FP. Secrecy is often a survival strategy to avoid stigma or conflict. Interventions must go beyond providing FP information and instead engage entire social networks—particularly mothers, partners, and healthcare workers—to shift […]
Socio-cultural factors perceived to influence sexual behaviours of adolescents in Ethiopia
Key Social Norms Take-aways: This study reveals that prevailing social and cultural norms in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia—especially those stigmatizing adolescent sexuality and condom use—contribute significantly to adolescents’ engagement in risky sexual behavior. Despite general cultural and religious discouragement of premarital sex, community-level norms perpetuate shame, fear, and judgment around seeking sexual and reproductive health (SRH) […]
Social and gender norms informing, voicing, and reporting against sexual harassment among domestic workers in Kampala’s informal economy
Key Social Norms Take-aways: Social and gender norms in Uganda deeply constrain domestic workers’ ability to recognize, voice, and formally report sexual harassment. Norms of female submissiveness, the privatization of sexual matters, and expectations around dress and propriety contribute to victim-blaming, shame, and normalization of harassment. These norms also shape how institutions and actors—such as […]
Measuring social norms of intimate partner violence to exert control over wife agency, sexuality, and reproductive autonomy: an item response modelling of the IPV-ASRA scale
Key Social Norms Take-aways: This study confirms that social norms justifying intimate partner violence to control women’s agency, sexuality, and reproductive autonomy are measurable, culturally salient, and linked to male perpetration of violence in Niger. Importantly, the norms that sanction violence when women challenge male authority—such as going out without permission or arguing—are more strongly […]