including HIV prevention, treatment, care and support

Questioning gender norms with men to improve health outcomes: Evidence of impact.

This article describes a review of 58 evaluation studies of programmes with men and boys in sexual and reproductive health (including HIV prevention, treatment, care and support); father involvement; gender-based violence; maternal, newborn and child health; and gender socialisation more broadly. While few of the programmes go beyond the pilot stage, or a relatively short-term timeframe, they offer compelling evidence that well-designed programmes with men and boys can lead to positive changes in their behaviours and attitudes related to sexual and reproductive health; maternal, newborn and child health; their interaction with their children; their use of violence against women; their questioning of violence with other men; and their health-seeking behaviour. The evidence indicates that programmes that incorporate a gender-transformative approach and promote gender-equitable relationships between men and women are more effective in producing behaviour change than narrowly focused interventions, as are programmes which reach beyond the individual level to the social context.

Editors’ note: Gender norms are the social expectations of appropriate roles and behaviours for men and women. They vary across historical and local economic, religious, and cultural contexts and are created and reinforced by families, communities, and social/political/legal environments. Because gender norms are learned and internalized, rather than being biologically determined, they can also be questioned and transformed to be more gender-equitable. This review confirms that comprehensive programmes with men and boys that include specific discussions about the social meanings of men and masculinity seem to show the highest levels of effectiveness. More research is needed to assess the impact of public policy changes and social trends on the behaviour of men and boys, on the bidirectional expectations of both sexes, and on early and potentially gender-transformative practices in men’s involvement as fathers .