People will talk about her if she is not circumcised

Exploring the patterning, drivers and gender norms around female genital mutilation in Ethiopia's Somali region

Dados Bibliográficos

ID4595801
AutoresElizabeth Presler-Marshall (0000-0002-7255-100X, autor correspondente), Nicola Jones (0000-0002-9164-7947, Office of Diversity and Inclusion), Kefyalew Endale (0000-0002-2091-4403, Addis Ababa University), Tasssew Woldehanna (0000-0002-0658-4188, Addis Ababa University), Tassew Woldehanna, Workneh Yadete (International Trachoma Initiative), Abdilahi Abdiselam (Jigjiga University)
Ano2024
Volume345
Páginas116664
Data de publicação2024-03-01
Peer ReviewedSim
Open AccessSim
TipoARTICLE
PeriódicoSocial Science & Medicine (JOURNAL)
Identificadores do periódicoISSN: 0277-9536 • E-ISSN: 1873-5347
EditoraElsevier BV (PUBLISHER)
DOI10.1016/j.socscimed.2024.116664
PMID38364724
OpenAlexW4391787461
IdiomaEN
Citações recebidas1
Referências citadas27

Over the past decade there has been a burgeoning literature on social norms and the need to understand their context-specific patterning and trends to promote change, including to address the harmful practice of female genital mutilation (FGM), which affects around 200 million girls and women globally. This article draws on mixed-methods data collected in 2022 and 2023 with 1,020 adolescents and their caregivers, as well as key informants, from Ethiopia's Somali region to explore the patterning, drivers, and decision-making around FGM. Findings indicate that almost all Somali girls can expect to undergo FGM before age 15, and that infibulation is near universal. Critically, however, we find that respondents' understanding of infibulation is rooted in traditional practice, and many girls are now "partially" infibulated-an invasive procedure that girls nonetheless see as an improvement over the past. These shifts reflect religious leaders' efforts to eliminate traditional infibulation--and the health risks it entails--by promoting "less invasive" types of FGM as a requirement of Islam. We also find evidence of emergent medicalization of the practice, as mothers-who are the primary decision-makers-seek to further reduce risks. Adult and adolescent respondents agree that FGM is a deeply embedded social norm, but distinguish between FGM as a perceived religious requirement, and infibulation as a cultural requirement. For girls and women, the importance of FGM is framed around social acceptance, whereas boys and men focus on FGM as a requirement for marriage as it allows families to control girls' sexuality. The article concludes by reflecting on the implications of our findings for programming in high-prevalence contexts. Key conclusions include that FGM interventions should not rely on empowering individuals as "champions of change" but rather prioritize engagement with whole communities, and should be open in the short term to incremental harm-reduction approaches

Context (archaeology · Geography · Human sexuality · Norm (philosophy · Political science · Population · Sociology · Somali · Demography · Female Genital Mutilation/Cutting Issues · Gender Studies · Genital Health and Disease · Legal and cultural studies analysis · Psychology