Sexual Cultures in Scandinavia

Abstract

Scandinavia as a social and cultural entity comprises the Nordic countries – Denmark, Sweden, Norway, Iceland, and Finland – plus the autonomous territories of Greenland and the Faroe Islands, which belong to Denmark, and the Aland Islands, which are part of Finland. The social and cultural distinctions of the countries notwithstanding, it is often justified to consider them in aggregate. For example, in terms of prevailing values and ideals the Nordic societies are more secularized and less traditional than most other western societies, and values pertaining to “self‐expression” (tolerance, post‐materialist values, etc.) are also relatively speaking very prominent in Nordic societies (Inglehart & Baker 2000). This has a bearing on various issues of sexual life and sexual norms.