Doin' Me: Millennial Women's Expression of Sexual Agency in St. Kitts

Abstract

This research paper explores how millennial women express their sexual agency in St. Kitts. Focus group discussions and interviews (n = 19) revealed that women see choice, consent and freedom from pressure as central to sexual agency; that media, age, inexperience, and societal expectations influenced their agency; and that sexual pleasure and identity became increasingly important to them over time. Women's understanding and actions of agency proved sometimes contradictory, and sexual agency was revealed to be a complex, ever-changing, and individual phenomenon. This study contributes to feminist research in the area of women's sexuality and among millennials—an area and group relatively understudied in the Caribbean. Adding to the limited body of research on St. Kitts done by Kittitians, the study is also significant in examining whether or not traditional gender socialization is being accepted or rejected by young women and provides critical insight for health, education and human rights policymakers, with insight about women's ability to be actors in matters related to sex (such as accessing sex education, negotiating contraceptive use and controlling family planning), and their ability to access and enjoy sexual rights.