Young sexual minority women's use of the internet and other digital technologies for sexual health information seeking

Abstract

We know little about the online sexual health information seeking practices and needs specific to young sexual minority women. This is problematic as young sexual minority women report heightened negative sexual health outcomes in contrast to their heterosexual peers, which could be partially addressed through being able to access effective, relevant online sexual health information sources. This exploratory qualitative study employed a series of focus groups to understand more about what types of online resources young sexual minority women access, their motivations for using those resources, and what types of sexual health information they need. The focus group data were analyzed from a thematic analysis approach. Results indicate that participants used a wide range of online resources, such as apps, websites, blogs, and YouTube. The type of resource accessed often depended upon the information needed. Participants reported preferring online resources due to experiences or expectations of heteronormativity from their sexual health service providers, convenience and accessibility, the capacity to remain anonymous, and the lack of relevant sexual health information offline. These findings help begin to fill the gap on knowledge of young sexual minority women's sexual health information seeking practices, which can be used for the development of effective online sexual health information resources targeting young sexual minority women.