PMC Research Published in African Journal of Reproductive Health

Consider the story of Nachilindi, a fictional woman in Zambia, who is struggling over whether to advance her education or have a second child. Where should she turn for guidance? Whom should she trust to give her good advice? Or, how about a situation in which Nachilindi chooses to forego increasing the size of her family — because she already has achieved her preferred family size of two kids. Would an average Zambian think that was a good decision? How much would other people’s opinions impact her choices?

These and similar vignettes — short, culturally relevant mini-storylines — were among the hypothetical scenarios presented to Zambian women as part of PMC research to develop and test social norms evaluation tools. The results were published in December 2021 in the peer-reviewed African Journal of Reproductive Health.

What the study tested

Social norms play an outsized role in family planning decisions — not just what people know, but what they perceive others expect, approve of, and do. PMC’s research used surveys and focus group discussions to measure family planning norms among nearly 600 young Zambian women, drawing on participants who were listeners of PMC-Zambia’s two radio programs, Kwishilya (“Over the Horizon”) and Siñalamba (“Breaking the Barrier”). The study assessed whether mixed-methods research using these new evaluation tools could effectively measure family planning norms.

The vignettes were created by Chengo Musakanya, head writer for PMC-Zambia shows, who grounded each scenario in Zambian culture. Participants were generally asked what most married women ages 19–34 would do in the character’s situation — a method designed to surface the perceptions about what others do that drive social norms. “Using vignettes was key,” Musakanya said. “The environment and setup were more casual than corporate. That allowed people to relax.” Surveys were conducted in homes, and focus groups were kept small.

The approach was led by Dr. Amy Henderson Riley, PMC’s Director of Research, Evaluation, and Impact, in partnership with PMC-Zambia and Pragma Consultancy, a Zambian research organization, with support from the Grantham Foundation for the Protection of the Environment.

What the study found

“The most important takeaway is that, in large part, the study validated the use of these tools,” said Riley. The vignette-based methodology effectively surfaced the nuances of social norms around family planning — perceptions that traditional survey instruments often miss. The tools open a pathway for PMC to measure not just whether attitudes change, but whether the social norms that shape behavior are shifting.

What Musakanya learned from the research fed directly back into the creative process. “I found that we could use more focused, shorter story threads involving the main character that would still highlight the intended message without distorting the main storyline,” he said. “I realized we could make characters even more relatable and memorable, which makes it easier to get the message across.”

Why it matters

For SRHR practitioners and funders, measuring social norms has long been one of the field’s hardest challenges. It is relatively straightforward to measure whether people know about contraception or whether they can access services. It is far harder to measure what they believe their community expects of them — and yet those beliefs are often the decisive factor in whether someone acts on what they know.

PMC’s vignette-based methodology offers a replicable, culturally adaptable approach to that measurement challenge. The tools were designed to be applied across country contexts, with vignettes adjusted for cultural relevance. Publication in the African Journal of Reproductive Health positions the research within the academic community where it can inform the work of other SRHR and social and behavior change communication practitioners.