Positive Masculinities and Gender-Based Violence Educational Interventions Among Young People: A Systematic Review

Background: Hegemonic masculinity has been recognized as contributing to the perpetration of different forms of gender-based violence (GBV). Abandoning hegemonic masculinities and promoting positive masculinities are both strategies used by interventions that foreground a “gender-transformative approach.” Preventing GBV among young people could be strengthened by engaging young men. In this article, we aim to systematically review the primary characteristics, methodological quality, and results of published evaluation studies of educational interventions that aim to prevent different forms of GBV through addressing hegemonic masculinities among young people. Main body: We conducted a systematic review of available literature (2008–2019) using Medline (PubMed), Scopus, Web of Science, PsycInfo, the CINAHL Complete Database, and ERIC as well as Google scholar. The Template for Intervention Description and Replication was used for data extraction, and the quality of the selected studies was analyzed using the Mixed Method Appraisal Tool. More than half of the studies were conducted in Africa (n = 10/15) and many were randomized controlled trials (n = 8/15). Most of the studies with quantitative and qualitative methodologies (n = 12/15) reported a decrease in physical GBV and/or sexual violence perpetration/victimization (n = 6/15). Longitudinal studies reported consistent results over time. Conclusions: Our results highlight the importance of using a gender-transformative approach in educational interventions to engage young people in critical thinking about hegemonic masculinity and to prevent GBV.