USAID’s Collective Action to Reduce Gender-Based Violence: How to Identify and Advance Equitable Social Norms

Description

Follow this guidance on how the definition of social norms, including gender norms, relates to gender-based violence. This brief explores a few key points:

• Social norms are collective beliefs about what is typical or appropriate. They can promote equitable or harmful behaviors or practices.
• Social norms are among the multilevel factors that underpin specific behaviors and practices.
• Gender norms are a type of social norm that influence behavior based on expected gender roles and responsibilities.
• One root cause of gender-based violence is the harmful gender norm that women and men are unequal.