For decades, there has been a call to engage men in reproductive health across the globe. This is critical in India, where half of pregnancies are unplanned and patriarchal gender norms favor men as decision-makers. As in many countries, husbands dominate discussion about family planning and family size and dictate their wives’ contraceptive use. Given this role, family planning programs should address gender-based norms and couples’ communication to help men, women, and couples meet their reproductive health goals.

New research led by Nadia Diamond Smith, PhD, tested an intervention to engage newly married husbands in a reproductive health education program targeting newly married women in rural Rajasthan, India.

The Transforming Actions for Reaching and Nurturing Gender Equity and Empowerment (TARANG) intervention focused on newly married women, with 16 group sessions over 6 months. Researchers added a light-touch complementary intervention with husbands, consisting of 4 group sessions on topics including contraception methods and love and relationships.

They found that the men are entering marriage with limited knowledge about reproductive health but with significant interest and willingness to learn. They want to delay having a baby yet have little understanding of family planning methods and biological processes. They often have incorrect information about methods and biology, and most were not using a contraceptive method. It's clear that the men were eager for more information and felt like they had no one to talk to or ask questions about these topics.

When given this relatively light-touch intervention, not only did men’s knowledge increase, but their self-reported behaviors changed, especially around increasing communications with their partners. They saw other changes in their lives, like increased love and better sexual relations with their wives.

Intervening with newly married couples can help set them on an alternate life course trajectory, allowing them to build and plan their families as they wish. It also allows them to build a foundation early of strong communication, mutual respect, shared decision-making, and more love and intimacy.

An unexpected finding was the impact of being part of a group session like this on men’s own sense of voice, agency, and empowerment. Researchers also found that this empowerment went beyond the individual level, spreading to other community members. Some men became resources for others, further spreading this knowledge and norms.

Engaging men presents a challenge, and it’s understandable that many programs struggle. Innovative and simple approaches may provide effective. Young husbands in these settings aspire to build healthier, more positive, and loving relationships with their wives, while also seeking a greater understanding of fertility and contraception. Simple interventions like this may go beyond educating men and improving their relationships. They may be able to empower men to be leaders of norm change in their communities.