Session: Gendered Lives and Urban Margins: Mental Health, Violence, and Collective Care in Informal Settlements (Society for Social Work and Research 30th Annual Conference Anniversary)

Across informal settlements, intersecting forces of poverty, structural inequality, and gendered expectations profoundly shape the mental health and wellbeing of residents. This symposium responds directly to the 2026 SSWR theme,"Leading for Transformative Change: Aligning Social Work Science with Policy and Practice", by presenting four interdisciplinary studies rooted in the experiences of residents in informal settlements. These papers collectively explore how violence, stigma, and resilience emerge in everyday life and what this means for social work research, policy, and practice. Focusing on the experiences of men, women, and families, these papers offer a multidimensional view of how gender, structural hardship, and community-based care shape both suffering and strength in urban marginalized contexts.

The first paper introduces a conceptual framework--The Fatherhood Stress Framework in Informal Settlements (FSF-IS)--that applies ecological systems theory to examine how multi-level stressors affect fathers' mental health and caregiving. The framework illustrates how toxic masculinity norms, systemic marginalization, and economic instability converge to impact fatherhood, calling for father-inclusive, cross-sectoral, gender-transformative interventions that integrate mental health support, economic empowerment, and policy reform.

The second study presents findings from a quantitative survey of 800 women living in Mathare and Kibera. It reveals that motherhood significantly amplifies the psychological impacts of intimate partner violence (IPV), particularly in settings of chronic poverty and limited health services. This paper argues for trauma-informed, community-based responses that prioritize the voices of IPV-exposed mothers in shaping mental health services and violence prevention policy--bridging science and practice to protect the most vulnerable.

The third presentation offers a qualitative exploration of how unmet masculinity ideals and internalized shame in the face of structural hardships contribute to poor mental health of and the perpetration of IPV by young men in informal settlements. Based on interviews with survivors, health workers, and community volunteers, it examines how systemic hardship undermines men's mental health and fosters cycles of harm. This paper calls for gender-responsive support systems that address men's psychosocial needs, economic marginalization, and the cyclical impacts of patriarchal norms on community health and safety.

The final paper reframes menstrual health and hygiene (MHH) as a social justice issue deeply intertwined with mental health, stigma, and community resilience. Findings from mixed-methods research show that women in informal settlements engage in powerful grassroots responses to menstrual inequity--sharing products, forming support networks, and organizing waste management efforts. These practices demonstrate how collective action and community care can reduce stigma, improve mental wellbeing, and build local capacity for change.

Together, these papers advance a holistic understanding of health, gender, and resilience in informal settlements. Each presentation bridges disciplinary silos, centers local knowledge, and advances social work's leadership in addressing the mental health, safety, and dignity of marginalized urban populations. By illuminating how structural violence manifests in intimate relationships, parenting roles, and bodily experiences--and how communities creatively respond--this symposium offers a compelling agenda for social work. It underscores the need for intersectional, community-based, and gender-transformative interventions that center local knowledge and experience as catalysts for justice, healing, and systemic change. systemic change.