Engendering Healthy Masculinities to Prevent Sexual Violence: Rationale for and Design of the Manhood 2.0 Trial

Violence against women and girls is an important global health concern, and many organizations highlight engaging men and boys in preventing violence as a potentially impactful public health prevention strategy. Adapted from an international setting for use in the United States, Manhood 2.0 is a gender-transformative program that involves challenging harmful gender and sexuality norms that foster violence against women while promoting bystander intervention to reduce the perpetration of sexual violence and adolescent relationship abuse.

This study provides urgently needed information about the efficacy of a gender-transformative program that combines healthy sexuality education, gender norms change, and bystander skills to interrupt peers’ harmful behaviors and reduce violence and abuse perpetration among adolescent males.