It Begins at 10: How Gender Expectations Shape Early Adolescence Around the World

The period of adolescence (ages 10e19 years) is one of the most critical periods of human development as the health and well-being at this age influences health trajectories with lifelong consequences. While considered among the healthiest period of the lifespan, the period of early adolescence (ages 10e14 years) is also a transitional period in which many health behaviors are acquired. However, this has been greatly overlooked. To address this gap, in the fall of 2011, a group of six research teams met in Dakar, Senegal, to begin conceptualizing a study focused on early adolescents. A year earlier, the World Health Organization convened an expert committee to specifically identify the priorities for adolescent health; and the paucity of research on early adolescence was identified as a primary gap. In Dakar, gender inequalities and their consequences for sexual and reproductive health and health more broadly emerged as top priorities. Over the nearly 4 years that followed, the initial group of country collaborators grew to 15 from across five continents (Ecuador, Bolivia, Belgium, Scotland, United States, South Africa, Malawi, Kenya, DR Congo, Burkina Faso, Nigeria, Egypt, Vietnam, China, and India). At that time, there was little understanding of or prior research on how to conceptualize or measure key constructs related to gender norms, relationships, sexuality, and empowerment in early adolescence. To better understand the gendered transitions from childhood to adolescence we decided to start the Global Early Adolescent Study by asking young people and their parents about their experiences of