Raising Awareness and changing social norms
Our Solutions
Since we work around the world, we have a unique vantage point in bringing together the expertise and understanding of what works to prevent violence and assist survivors. We have collected an extensive body of knowledge, from developing comprehensive national laws to executing successful awareness-raising campaigns. A growing number of countries are taking action to end violence, drawing on our information resources for the most effective strategies.
From Awareness Raising to Fostering Behaviour Change to Prevent Violence against Women and Girls
Awareness-raising activities are widely used and can have an important to play in tackling violence against women and girls (VAWG). However, there is little evidence that awareness-raising activities on their own can significantly reduce VAWG. While programmes designed to prevent VAWG have raised awareness and shifted attitudes about abuse, few have successfully reduced violent behaviour, and there is often a mismatch between the intended aims of awareness-raising activities and what they are likely to achieve. This has led researchers and practitioners to explore whether and how behaviour change theories and approaches might be applied to support the development of more effective VAWG prevention programmes.
These two complementary briefs, produced by UN Women and the Prevention Collaborative, highlight the different types of awareness-raising approaches and what they can achieve, as well as the limitations of this approach, and outline key steps to apply a behavioural approach for violence prevention.
Watch the launch here:
Myth Busting and Ground Breaking Solutions, 16 Days of Activism 2021
The United Nations is marking the 16 Days of Activism against Gender-based Violence from 25 November to 10 December 2021, under the global theme set by the UN Secretary-General’s UNiTE campaign: “Orange the World: End Violence against Women Now!”
Read about our 2021 16 Days of Activism here.
Watch more myths get busted here.
