Gender Role Beliefs at Sexual Debut: Qualitative Evidence from Two Brazilian Cities

Abstract

Culturally based beliefs about gender roles influence women's sexual behavior and their ability to protect themselves from unwanted sexual experiences. Studying the beliefs that influence women's behavior at sexual debut helps contextualize unwanted sexual intercourse. Twenty-four focus groups on women's beliefs about gender roles at sexual debut were conducted in 2002 with low- and middle-income women aged 18-21 and 30-39 who were recruited from public and private venues in Recife, capital of Pernambuco, and Belo Horizonte, capital of Minas Gerais, Brazil. The data were analyzed for common themes, and quotations were chosen to illustrate those themes. Focus group participants perceived that men have an urgent need for sex. This perception caused women to fear abandonment, anger or violence if they refused to have sex with their partner. The participants believed that women had to act passive the first time they had sex because taking the initiative (for example, by asking their partner to practice contraception) would lead him to accuse them of having previous sexual experience. Also, they believed they had to say no to sex under all circumstances to protect their reputation. To decrease the occurrence of unwanted intercourse, interventions must address the social expectations that influence men's and women's sexual behavior.