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Period teasing, stigma and knowledge: A survey of adolescent boys and girls in Northern Tanzania.

ABSTRACT: Emerging evidence suggests that menstruation-related teasing is a common experience among adolescent girls with ramifications on their school participation, yet empirical evidence on the prevalence and determinants of period teasing in schools remain scarce. Menstrual hygiene research and policies almost exclusively focus on girls and women, leading to a dearth of knowledge of male attitudes. We conducted the first quantitative survey of period teasing in schools in sub-Saharan Africa, focusing on 432 male and 524 female students in four co-educational secondary schools in northern Tanzania. Period teasing is prevalent; 13% of girls have experienced period teasing, and more than 80% fear being teased, especially by male classmates. Girls' fears are associated with insufficient menstrual hygiene management resources and practices. Girls cope by reducing school attendance, participation, and concentration in the classroom during periods. Boys engage in period teasing because they perceive periods as embarrassing, especially visible markers of periods (odor or stains). Social norms, such as peer behavior and home restrictions on menstruating women, are associated with more teasing. Boys believe it is strongly inappropriate for girls to reveal period status or to discuss periods with males, including male teachers. In contrast, boys are well informed about basic biological facts of menstruation (scoring 60% on a knowledge quiz, not statistically different from the girls) and have received information from school curricula and health workers. Lack of suitable menstrual hygiene practices and restrictive social norms is correlated with period teasing, which hinders gender equality in educational opportunities. Providing narrowly bio-medical focused education about menstruation may not be enough to reduce period teasing in contexts with period stigma.

SUBMITTER: Benshaul-Tolonen A

PROVIDER: S-EPMC7592731 | biostudies-literature | 2020

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature

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Period teasing, stigma and knowledge: A survey of adolescent boys and girls in Northern Tanzania.

Benshaul-Tolonen Anja A Aguilar-Gomez Sandra S Heller Batzer Naomi N Cai Rebecca R Nyanza Elias Charles EC

PloS one 20201028 10

Emerging evidence suggests that menstruation-related teasing is a common experience among adolescent girls with ramifications on their school participation, yet empirical evidence on the prevalence and determinants of period teasing in schools remain scarce. Menstrual hygiene research and policies almost exclusively focus on girls and women, leading to a dearth of knowledge of male attitudes. We conducted the first quantitative survey of period teasing in schools in sub-Saharan Africa, focusing ...[more]

PMID: 33112868

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Project description:ObjectiveTo assess the prevalence of and factors associated with depression among adolescent boys and girls.DesignWe conducted a nationwide cross-sectional study.SettingThis study was carried out in 82 randomly selected clusters (57 rural, 15 non-slum urban and 10 slums) from eight divisions of Bangladesh.ParticipantsWe interviewed 4907 adolescent boys and 4949 adolescent girls.Primary and secondary outcome measuresThe primary outcome measure was 'any depression' and the secondary outcome measures were types of depression: no or minimal, mild, moderate, moderately severe and severe.ResultsThe overall prevalence of no or minimal, mild, moderate, moderately severe and severe depression was 75.5%, 17.9%, 5,4%, 1.1% and 0.1%, respectively. Across most of the sociodemographic, lifestyle and anthropometric strata, the prevalence of any depression was higher among adolescent girls. In both sexes, depression was associated with higher age, higher maternal education, paternal occupation e.g., business, absence of a 6-9-year-old member in the household, food insecurity, household consumption of unfortified oil, household use of non-iodised salt, insufficient physical activity (adjusted odds ratio, AOR: 1.24 for boys, 1.44 for girls) and increased television viewing time e.g., ≥121 minute/day (AOR: 1.95 for boys, 1.99 for girls). Only among boys, depression was also associated with higher paternal education e.g., complete secondary and above (AOR: 1.42), absence of another adolescent member in the household (AOR: 1.34), household use of solid biomass fuel (AOR: 1.39), use of any tobacco products (AOR: 2.17), and consumption of processed food (AOR: 1.24). Only among girls, non-slum urban residence, Muslim religion, and household size ≤4 were also associated with depression.ConclusionThe prevalence of depression among adolescent boys and girls is high in Bangladesh. In most sociodemographic, lifestyle and anthropometric strata, the prevalence is higher among girls. In this age group, depression is associated with a number of sociodemographic and lyfestyle factors. The government of Bangladesh should consider these findings while integrating adolescent mental health in the existing and future programmes.

Project description:Abstract Background Differential effects of the coronavirus SARS‐CoV‐2 (COVID‐19) pandemic and associated public restrictions on adolescent girls and boys are emerging but have not been elucidated. This study examined gender differences across broad indicators of adolescent well‐being during the COVID‐19 pandemic in Iceland, and explored potential explanations for these differences. Methods In total, 523 youth (56.5% girls) born in Iceland in 2004 completed measures on mental health problems (depressive symptoms, anger and suicide attempts) and measures designed for this study to assess broad indicators of adolescent well‐being (e.g., day‐to‐day life, academic performance, family and peer relationships, and mental and physical health) and behavioral changes during the COVID‐19 pandemic. Mental health problems during the pandemic were compared to expected scores based on nationwide ratings of same‐aged peers in 2018. Results Although both boys and girls appeared affected, girls reported a greater negative impact across all the broad indicators of well‐being and behavioral change during COVID‐19 than boys, and their depressive symptoms were above and beyond the expected nationwide scores (t(1514) = 4.80, p < .001, Cohen's d = 0.315). Higher depressive symptoms were associated with increased passive social media use and decreased connecting with family members via telephone or social media among girls, and decreased sleeping and increased online gaming alone among boys. Concern about others contracting COVID‐19, changes in daily and school routines, and not seeing friends in person were among the primary contributors to poor mental health identified by youth, particularly girls. Conclusions Adolescents were broadly negatively affected by the COVID‐19 pandemic and accompanying restrictions; however, this negative impact was more pronounced in girls. The findings suggest that a steady routine and remaining socially connected may help youth cope with the uncertainty and social restrictions associated with a pandemic. Moreover, healthcare providers, teachers, and other professionals should pay close attention to depressive symptoms among girls during a pandemic.

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Dataset Information

Period teasing, stigma and knowledge: A survey of adolescent boys and girls in Northern Tanzania.

Publications

Period teasing, stigma and knowledge: A survey of adolescent boys and girls in Northern Tanzania.

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