Do you want to address social norms?

Understand and transform social norms

Social norms are the shared beliefs about what constitutes typical and appropriate behaviour within a specific social ‘reference’ group. They play a critical role in shaping individual attitudes and behaviours as individuals anticipate whether they will gain social approval or disapproval for acting in a particular way. In many contexts, dominant social norms normalise and justify gender inequalities and the use of violence against women and girls (VAWG). Changing these norms is therefore important for preventing VAWG.

However, transforming predominant social norms takes time and the process can be non-linear. Norms often have a complex relationship with attitudes and behaviours, with influence flowing in both directions. However, by reaching a ‘tipping point’ where enough people in a community adopt new, positive behaviours and expectations, it is possible to shift the perception and reality of what is considered normal and end violence against women and girls.

Illustrative lists of behaviours, attitudes and social norms on VAWG — Source: Social Norms Atlas: Understanding global social norms and related concepts (2021) page 31.

Guiding Principles

Survivor-Centred Approach

Do no harm approach

Leave No One Behind, Equity and Non-Discrimination

Transformative approach

Spotlight Initiative

Approach and Learning

Spotlight Initiative places substantive focus on the role of social norm change as a catalyst for change across multiple pillars of its work. It recognises that social norms shape everyday expectations about people's behaviours and are embedded in formal institutions, laws and policies. Key approaches and learnings about understanding and transforming social norms include:

Supporting women’s movements and CSOs with the skills and resources to build a global movement for social change is also one of the most effective and sustainable ways of transforming social norms.
Use a holistic approach to transforming social norms at community level, including community mobilisation approaches and using champions of change, celebrities and opinion leaders. For example, Spotlight Initiative has supported the replication, adoption and scale-up of the SASA! approach to change social norms across many countries, including in Haiti, and Uganda.
Address social norms in training and school curricula. Spotlight Initiative has also partnered with academia, civil society, government and rights holders to develop and institutionalise curricula and strategies to educate and socialise norms that promote gender equality.
Engage with new technology and media platforms to encourage reflection on norms. Spotlight Initiative has also piloted the use of technology and social and traditional media to shift social norms in new and innovative ways. For example, Spotlight Initiative has partnered with UN Global Advocates and the Social Good Club to work with social media influencers to develop a Culture Change Commitment to start to shift attitudes and norms about different forms of violence on social media channels.

Top Tips

How to transform social norms - top tips based on learning from the wider sector.

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Conduct context-specific analysis to identify norms

Review intervention approaches to transform social norms

Identify implementing partners committed to gender-transformative approaches

Design programmes in line with best practice on social norms approaches

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Case Studies

Cure Violence model in Honduras

Spotlight Initiative

Spotlight Initiative in Honduras has supported the ‘Cure Violence’ model – a transformative approach aimed at reshaping social norms to address the alarming rates of femicide and violence against women and girls. Honduras has the highest femicide rate in Latin America at 6 cases per 100,000 women in 2022, with a culture of impunity where 96% of such crimes go unpunished. This UNICEF-supported initiative involves mobilising communities to change social norms in areas affected by gang violence and trafficking. It uses ‘violence interrupters’ to lead community dialogues and efforts to identify and prevent instances of violence. Their mission is not only to intervene in violent situations but also to strengthen the capacities of diverse communities to identify risk factors and use a collective approach towards preventing violence and saving lives.

Results: In the first six months, the ‘Cure Violence’ model interrupted 662 violent instances and potentially saved 133 women. The efforts expanded to avert 1,770 violent incidents involving more than 724 women and girls across 25 neighbourhoods. Notably, about 65% of these interventions prevented femicide. Beyond saving lives, the programme also facilitated the relocation of individuals to safer environments. Overall, crime rates reduced in targeted areas by more than half due to the efforts of violence interrupters working to build community capacity on risk identification and de-escalation tactics to address violent situations. Out of the total cases managed, nearly 65 per cent of them involved the prevention of femicide.

The initiative combines rapid response with efforts to change social norms around harmful masculinity and gender inequality through community dialogue and youth engagement to tackle GBV. In communities where children are raised in a culture of machismo, believing men are superior and women submissive, the programme works with young people as agents of change within their peer group and spheres of influence to create lasting change in norms and behaviour.

Honduras violence interruptor, Joel — Joel, a community violence interrupter trained by UNICEF partner Barrio Positivo/Cure Violence, works in Chamelecón, a suburb of San Pedro Sula, Honduras. Chamelecón is one of the most violent neighborhoods in Honduras due to gang-related conflicts. Photo: UNICEF Honduras/Luis Villatoro Source: Spotlight Initiative (2021). Trained violence interrupters avert homicide in Honduras

Region: Latin America

Stakeholders: Civil Society Organisations, Men and boys, Women and Girls

Working with traditional leaders to shift norms on FGM in Liberia

Spotlight Initiative

In Liberia, Spotlight Initiative developed a partnership with nearly 450 traditional leaders to shift community perceptions and practices surrounding female genital mutilation (FGM). In Liberia, approximately half of women and girls aged 15 to 49 have undergone FGM, according to the 2013 Demographic and Health Survey.

“We have started to respect and value our wives, women and girls, treating them with love and care.” - Chief Wilfred Gahr, Co-Chairman for Administration of the Traditional Council of Chiefs and Elders of Liberia

By leveraging the influence and authority of traditional leaders, Spotlight Initiative aimed to address and shift deeply entrenched social norms around FGM. During the 16 Days of Activism campaign against FGM, traditional leaders committed to the concept of ‘Initiation without Mutilation’ whereby girls can undergo the cultural rites of passage into womanhood without FGM.

Through its close partnership with the influential National Traditional Council of Chiefs and Elders, Spotlight Initiative contributed to:

Adoption of a three-year suspension on FGM,
The closure of 65 bush schools where girls undergo a series of rituals, including FGM.
The establishment of Vocational and Heritage Centres as alternatives to bush schools, providing former FGM practitioners with new opportunities for income and engaging the community in positive cultural and social practices.
A commitment from an additional 300 traditional Zoes (women elders), including 97 head Zoes and 203 practitioners, to cease FGM activities and pursue alternative livelihoods.