Measuring agency as a dimension of empowerment among young adolescents globally; findings from the Global Early Adolescent Study

Linnea A Zimmerman; Mengmeng Li; Caroline Moreau; Siswanto Wilopo; Robert Blum

doi:10.1016/j.ssmph.2019.100454

Measuring agency as a dimension of empowerment among young adolescents globally; findings from the Global Early Adolescent Study

SSM Popul Health. 2019 Jul 19:8:100454. doi: 10.1016/j.ssmph.2019.100454. eCollection 2019 Aug.

Authors

Linnea A Zimmerman¹, Mengmeng Li¹, Caroline Moreau¹, Siswanto Wilopo², Robert Blum¹

Affiliations

¹ Department of Population, Family, and Reproductive Health, Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, 615 N Wolfe St, Baltimore, Maryland, 21205, USA.
² Faculty of Medicine, Universitas Gadjah Mada, Bulaksumur, Yogyakarta, 55281, Indonesia.

Abstract

•Agency, a domain of empowerment, is a measurable construct amongst early adolescents age 10-14.•Three sub-scales - Voice, Freedom of Movement, and Behavioral Control and Decision-making - comprise the measurement of agency.•Differences in the Freedom of Movement sub-scale show a growing equity gap between boys and girls across multiple countries.•Users of the scales must consider context when adapting the items to account for differences in culture and environment.