Pathways for Contesting Gender Norms in Rural Development: A Case Study in Colombia

ABSTRACT The Fifth Sustainable Development Goal on gender equality remains distant in rural areas of low‐and middle‐income countries, where restrictive gender norms persist. While empowerment is promoted as a means of transforming these norms, little is known about how such transformations unfold or about the unintended negative consequences they may generate. We propose an analytical approach to understand how the resources provided by development programs translate into women gaining agency and contesting gender norms, which could lead to norm transformation, and how these processes can trigger negative consequences. We implemented the approach in a case study in Colombia, drawing on a large qualitative sample of 65 interviews with rural women and men. By integrating two distinct areas of scholarship, Gender and Development and Feminist Political Ecology, we identify four pathways through which resources from development programs foster agency while simultaneously producing adverse effects, including verbal intimate partner violence. This study presents an analytical approach useful for scholars and practitioners in development. It also offers empirical evidence of the pathways through which gender norms are contested and highlights the need for strategies to address the unintended negative consequences that may arise when promoting women's empowerment.