Faculty Research Fellows Lunch with Gary Darmstadt

Gary Darmstadt: “Using existing data to investigate relationships between gender norms and health”

Rigid gender norms and gender inequalities drive ill health for women, men, girls and boys, and contribute to poverty. To achieve their full human potential and to realize the promise of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) for a more just, inclusive, equitable and prosperous world, it is necessary to understand how gendered social norms matter to health for all – throughout the life course and around the world. Social norms are often identified by investigators as possible causes of poor health outcomes, and yet, few have attempted to test this causal relation. Our research is largely exploratory with the overarching goal of analyzing existing data to gain new insights into relationships between gendered social norms and health behaviors and outcomes that will lead to new hypotheses about potential ways in which to intervene to advance gender equality and health.

Gary Darmstadt is Professor (Teaching) of Pediatrics (Neonatology) and, by courtesy, of Obstetrics and Gynecology.