CARE Social Norms Diagnosis, Nigeria and Kenya

Situation
Gender norms pose barriers to achieving positive outcomes for adolescent girls and young women (AGYW) in the areas of gender-based violence (GBV), child early and forced marriage (CEFM), sexual and reproductive health (SRH), and women’s economic empowerment (WEE). In Kenya and Nigeria, AGYW face disparities in education, health, and access to resources due to gender norms that favor male education, early marriages, and economic barriers to AGYW.

What We’re Doing
This study aimed to identify gender norms that facilitate or prevent desired health and livelihood outcomes related to GBV, CEFM, SRH, and WEE among AGYW ages 15-25 in Kenya and Nigeria.

Our Approach
We conducted secondary data analysis to select priority behaviors in Kenya and Nigeria of interest to the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation’s Program Strategy Teams. We then conducted formative research to explore the influence of social norms on those behaviors. Research teams in each country conducted focus group discussions and key informant interviews with adolescent girls and young women ages 15-25 and their reference groups related to the selected behaviors. Tools from the Social Norms Exploration Tool and Social Norms Analysis Plot were used to facilitate rapid identification of relevant social norms, reference groups and sanctions.

Our Impact and What We’re Learning
In Kenya, findings revealed a complex interplay of attitudes and injunctive and descriptive norms that both support and challenge the perpetration of GBV. Descriptive norms most often supported violence as a sanction for adolescent girls who violate norms governing many health- and wellbeing-related domains, with the expectation that married girls should endure this violence. In contrast, many injunctive norms supported help-seeking behavior, and individuals often opposed GBV, an opportunity that norms-related programming can capitalize upon. In Nigeria, norms related to sexual and reproductive health and girls’ economic empowerment are already shifting in a positive direction – particularly in Lagos and Kano. However, even in the midst of positive change, there are still harsh – and sometimes violent – consequences for girls who challenge norms.