E le Saua le Alofa (Love shouldn’t hurt): exploring the acceptability, feasibility and potential impact of a co-developed intervention to prevent violence against women in Samoa

Women in Samoa experience a high rate of intimate partner violence (IPV) shaped in part by a history of colonisation and its influence on gender roles and lived experiences. As part of the EVE Project to improve the evidence base for preventing IPV in high-prevalence settings, we co-developed an intervention with 30 community-based researchers (CBRs) from 10 villages, drawing from evidence-based modules previously developed and evaluated in other neo-colonial contexts. We assessed the pilot intervention’s acceptability, feasibility and potential impact when delivered to groups of 15 men and 15 women in 10 participating villages, using a mixed methods before (baseline) and after (endline) study design. We collected a baseline (N = 289) and endline survey (N = 229); ‘stories of change’ interviews with participants (N = 151); in-depth interviews (N = 14) with CBRs, and intervention evaluation workbooks from CBRs (N = 18). The acceptability of the intervention was assessed through retention rates and participant interviews, while feasibility was assessed by interviews with CBRs, and observations of survey implementation. The potential impact of the intervention on IPV experience and perpetration, and on gender views was explored via the analysis of survey data. Results suggest a reduction in IPV experience and perpetration at endline compared to baseline, but associations were non-significant. Women’s belief of non-equitable norms was also lower at endline (β = − 0.54, 95% CI − 0.88 to − 0.21, p = 0.005). Attendance was high overall (although men’s acceptability was challenging in some villages). Participants shared positive feedback on the delivery by CBRs and careful adaptation to fa’a Samoa (‘the Samoan way’). Further research aligned with the Indigenous context of Samoa is required to assess its effectiveness. The study was registered retrospective to the pilot but prior to analysis as ISRCTN17319820 on 14 March 2024.