Uganda has one of the highest prevalences of intimate partner violence (IPV) globally. Research suggests community leaders can promote behavioral change, thereby reducing IPV. In Uganda, researchers conducted an impact evaluation of a faith-based couples counseling program called Becoming One. To attract a wide audience, Becoming One does not directly address violence, focusing instead on improving couples' relationships and shifting decision-making power. A year later, the program reduced IPV by 12 percent and shifted power within the relationship towards women, while also improving intimacy and communication.

Governments and organizations around the world employ media messaging to effect behavioral and attitudinal change. In Uganda, Innovations for Poverty Action worked with researchers to evaluate whether videos encouraging communities to speak out about and counter violence against women (VAW) in the household could change behavior, attitudes and norms related to VAW. In surveys conducted eight months after the intervention, the proportion of women who reported any VAW in their household over the preceding six months was substantially lower in villages where the videos were screened than in villages randomly assigned to the comparison group. The results suggest education-entertainment has the potential to markedly reduce the incidence of VAW in an enduring and scalable manner.

The IPA IPV Research Initiative seeks to inform global development policy and practice through expanding and improving the scientific evidence on pathways to mitigate IPV. By building on existing studies, the IPV Research Initiative aims to generate insights on the types of development programs that shift IPV outcomes and what factors drive these changes.