Evaluation of Manhood 2.0: A Community-Based Teen Pregnancy Prevention Program for Young Men

Plain-language summary

Manhood 2.0 is a male-only group-level intervention, delivered over 13 hours, based on social cognitive theory, social norm theory, theory of gender and power, and the theory of reasoned action. The intervention is a gender-transformative program that promotes critical reflection and awareness on reproductive health, healthy relationships, gender norms and stereotypes that drive reproductive health behavior, and explicit and proactive support of female partner contraceptive use. Activities include group discussion, role playing, knowledge sharing, and skill-building; their purpose is to challenge young men to think critically about social expectations and restrictive norms, engage in dialogue about these gender norms, and then assess the way rigid norms affect their attitudes and behaviors toward a number of key issues, including intimate relationships, gender-based violence, substance abuse, sexually transmitted infections, and early pregnancy. Young men receive the intervention at a local community center or high school. Comparison condition young men receive a post-high school readiness program that does not discuss gender norms or sexual and reproductive health. The study was conducted with six cohorts of eligible young men ages 15-18 who received a baseline, immediate post-intervention, and three-month post-intervention survey. To participate in the study, individuals had to meet all the following criteria: (1) Identify as male; (2) Ages 15 to 18; (3) Not actively planning a pregnancy with someone; (4) Never participated in the community center's sexual and reproductive health program; (5) Received no additional sexual or reproductive health programming in the last three months; (6) Able to participate in a program delivered in English only. The investigators hypothesized that Manhood 2.0 participants would have lower rates of unprotected sex and more equitable attitudes towards gender than comparison participants.

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