Sexual and Gender-Based Violence among Adolescents and Young Women: New Evidence and Call for Action

Understanding and addressing the impact of sexual and gender-based violence (SGBV) on young people reflected adverse health outcomes including sexual and reproductive health, negatively disrupting their life-course ambitions. SGBV has a long-term effect on the mental health of young people; it limits their socioeconomic opportunities and exposes them to premature deaths. The WHO estimates that one in three women have experienced physical, emotional, or sexual violence from someone they know, with one in four young women being abused before their mid-twenties. The magnitude, dimension, and overall impact of SGBV varies worldwide. There is new evidence that suggests a high SGBV scourge during the COVID pandemic and the post-pandemic era.

The impact of gender-based violence on young people is significant, leading to increased rates of depression and raising the risk of STI/HIV infections. Unfortunately, access to proper screening and treatment for infections resulting from gender-based violence remains inadequate. Humanitarian crises also contribute to high rates of gender-based violence, particularly affecting young people. SGBV continues to be a major concern for various sectors and organizations, as well as for individuals, due to challenges such as the secretive nature of SGBV, low reporting, stigmatization, lack of skilled health professionals for GBV treatment, poor referral, low competence of the law enforcement agencies, ineffective SGBV policies and laws, and lack of stakeholders' accountability. Despite the United Nations' development of a framework for essential services for victims and survivors of SGBV in 2020, it is unclear how many countries have effectively incorporated this framework to address the recent issue of GBV in the post-Covid era.

This Research Topic aims to explore new evidence globally, document the support services available for young women exposed to SGBV and understand interventions programs and policies around the issue.

Topics of particular interest include:

• Health disparities in providing SGBV services
• Impact of essential services in ending SGBV
• Health professional readiness to support survivors
• Policy implementation in the context of SGBV, and interventions
• Awareness of support system by victims
• Access to mental health support for survivors of GBV
• SRGBV – Is the recent attention to this issue making progress


The following article types are welcome: Original research, systematic review, methods, review, mini review, policy and practice review, perspective, community case study, policy brief, and study protocol.

Article types and fees

This Research Topic accepts the following article types, unless otherwise specified in the Research Topic description:

• Brief Research Report
• Case Report
• Classification
• Clinical Trial
• Community Case Study
• Curriculum, Instruction, and Pedagogy
• Data Report
• Editorial
• FAIR² Data
• ... View all formats

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Article types

This Research Topic accepts the following article types, unless otherwise specified in the Research Topic description:

• Brief Research Report
• Case Report
• Classification
• Clinical Trial
• Community Case Study
• Curriculum, Instruction, and Pedagogy
• Data Report
• Editorial
• FAIR² Data
• FAIR² DATA Direct Submission
• General Commentary
• Hypothesis and Theory
• Methods
• Mini Review
• Opinion
• Original Research
• Perspective
• Policy and Practice Reviews
• Policy Brief
• Review
• Study Protocol
• Systematic Review
• Technology and Code

Keywords: sexual violence, gender-based violence, adolescent, young women, girls, adolescent mental health, GBV, young people

Important note: All contributions to this Research Topic must be within the scope of the section and journal to which they are submitted, as defined in their mission statements. Frontiers reserves the right to guide an out-of-scope manuscript to a more suitable section or journal at any stage of peer review.