The project aims to understand how forced displacement impacts the perceptions of detrimental gender social norms of adolescents and their parents. We focus on examining the perceptions of two prevalent practices in the Sahel region of Africa: child-early forced marriage (CEFM) and female genital mutilation (FGM). The United Nations considers FGM and CEFM as violations of human rights for girls and women. Given that FGM is often practiced as a pre-marital rite of passage, girls who undergo it are more likely to be married at an early age. CEFM impedes girls' education, increases early pregnancy and the risk of maternal mortality, obstetric complications, gender-based violence, and HIV/AIDS, and robs them of their agency to make decisions about their lives. These harmful practices, still common in the Sahel, raise serious concerns regarding health, social justice, and respect for individual autonomy. The methodology employs incentivized behavioral economics games with adolescents and their parents in both peaceful and attacked areas of Burkina Faso. These areas are currently facing a significant surge in forced displacement due to terrorist attacks. We aim to measure personal and social norms through normative and empirical expectations and assess the impact of disseminating social information on personal norms. 

You can find my research project here: Research Project & Teaser Video