Quantitative evaluation of Zindagii Shoista (Living with Dignity) intervention to prevent violence against women in Tajikistan

ABSTRACT

Background

Violence against women and girls (VAWG) is a major problem in Tajikistan, driven by conservative gender norms, the culturally ascribed position of young women, and poverty.

Objective

We evaluated Zindagii Shoista (Living with Dignity), an intervention developed with the aim of reducing VAWG through a combination of gender norm change, communication skills, and income-generating activities (IGA) over a period of 30 months.

Methods

The evaluation used a mixed-methods approach, combining quantitative and qualitative data collection. Eighty families from four villages were enrolled in the intervention and surveyed at baseline and on three subsequent occasions. From these families, 134 women and 102 men were interviewed at baseline, 153 women and 89 men 8 months later, 153 women and 93 men 15 months later, and 143 women and 82 men, 30 months after the baseline. Generalised random effects regression models were used to assess the trend in proportions or mean score over time.

Results

Over the 30 months, the proportion of women and men earning in the past month rose from 17.9% to 56.6% and 44.1% to 72%, respectively. Women and men’s gender attitudes became significantly less patriarchal, and they reported less harmful gender norms in the community. Women and men reported less male controlling behaviour and greater woman involvement in decision-making. Women’s reports of experience of emotional, physical, and sexual IPV significantly reduced. Depressive symptoms and suicidal thoughts reduced significantly for men and women, and self-rated health improved.

Conclusions

The quantitative findings are confirmed by the findings of the qualitative research and monitoring data. They demonstrate that Zindagii Shoista is a very promising intervention for strengthening gender relations, reducing IPV, and improving mental health and socio-economic circumstances for younger married women and their families in Tajikistan.

KEYWORDS:

• Violence against women and girls
• intimate partner violence
• domestic violence
• women economic empowerment

Responsible Editor

Julia Schröders

Responsible Editor

Julia Schröders

Acknowledgments

We thank the Zindagii Shoista participants for embarking on this journey with us and sharing their time and life stories. We would also like to thank the dedicated staff of our partner organisations ATO, Farodis and Zanoni Sharq for their tireless commitment to this project as well as our colleagues in our respective institutions and the What Works consortium for their support.

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the authors.

Ethics and consent

The research received ethical approval by the Ethics Committee of the South African Medical Research Council EC032-9/2015. Informed consent was obtained from all participants interviewed in the study.

Paper context

In Tajikistan, the high prevalence of violence against women and girls (VAWG) is driven by the nexus of patriarchy and poverty, as they intersect in multi-generational family units. We describe an evaluation of Zindagii Shoista, the first theoretically grounded, multi-generational approach to prevent VAWG in Tajikistan. Economic empowerment and gender-transformative approach showed a strong and sustained impact on gender relations and economic indicators. Further implementation and evaluation are indicated in Tajikistan and similar settings.

Additional information

Funding

The intervention and research have been funded by UK Aid from the UK government, via the What Works to Prevent Violence Against Women and Girls Global Programme. The funds were managed by the South African Medical Research Council. The views expressed do not necessarily reflect the UK government’s official policies.

Notes on contributors

Subhiya Mastonshoeva

Subhiya Mastonshoeva Conceptualisation, Project Administration, Methodology, Writing – Original Draft.

Shahribonu Shonasimova

Shahribonu Shonasimova Conceptualisation, Project Management, Methodology, Writing – Review & Editing, Funding Acquisition.

Parvina Gulyamova

Parvina Gulyamova Conceptualisation, Project Administration, Methodology, Writing – Review & Editing.

Rachel Jewkes

Rachel Jewkes Conceptualisation, Methodology, Writing – Original draft.

Nwabisa Shai

Nwabisa Shai Conceptualisation, Methodology, Writing – Review & Editing.

Esnat Chirwa

Esnat Chirwa: Data analysis.

Henri Myrttinen

Henri Myrttinen Conceptualisation, Methodology, Writing – Original draft, Funding Acquisition.