Sexual-affective Relationships Research Articles

Accessibility of intimate partner violence-related services for young women in Spain. Qualitative study on professionals' perspectives.

Intimate partner violence (IPV) is common among young people, but the use of IPV resources among young adult women and teenagers is limited. This study aims to analyze professionals' perceptions about the main barriers and facilitators encountered by young women (16-29 years old) exposed to intimate partner violence (IPV) when accessing formal services in Spain. Qualitative study based on 17 in depth interviews carried out in 2019 with professionals who manage resources for IPV care in Madrid (Spain) from different sectors (social services, health care, security forces, women or youth issues offices, associations). A qualitative content analysis was conducted. The professionals interviewed perceive the following barriers: 1) Time it takes for young women to recognize IPV because the social construction of sexual-affective relationships is permeated by gender inequality; 2) The process of leaving a situation of abuse; 3) Barriers inherent to IPV services. The key aspects to improve access to these resources are related to care services, professional practice, and the young women themselves. There are both psychosocial barriers, derived from the process of leaving a situation of violence, as well as structural barriers for young women to access and properly use the recognized services specifically aimed at them or comprehensive IPV care. Services need to be tailored to the needs of young women so they can be truly effective in order to escape IPV.

What Is the Patriarchy Doing in Our Bed? Violent Sexual-Affective Experiences Among Youth

Abstract Introduction In the context of a qualitative research study on sexual practices and risk among youth, repeated accounts of non-consensual sex and other forms of gender-based violence emerged. Drawing from that research, this article explores the influence of the patriarchal system on sexual-affective relationships among young people aged 18–25 years residing in Andalusia, Spain. Methods The fieldwork was conducted between March and May 2019. Six discussion groups were held with 39 participants segmented by gender, level of education, sexual orientation, and length of relationships. Results The results show that patriarchal constructs related to female body standards and the subordination of women’s pleasure to men’s, in addition to blackmail and sexual violence, continue to pervade the sexual-affective imaginaries and experiences of young people. Additionally, the participants’ discourses on patriarchal and sexual violence are interwoven with critical feminist points of view, revealing timid signs of resistance to the patriarchal order. Conclusions Women navigate inequality by assuming, negotiating, or rebelling against the different types of violence to which they are exposed in their intimate relationships. In their sexual-affective relationships, young people today are confronted with numerous tensions and contradictions. The discourse of females shifts between their right to seek pleasure and self-blaming, while trying to overcome feelings of shame and dismantling aesthetic standards or empowering themselves and claiming orgasm equality. Policy Implications The findings are applicable for the prevention of violence against young women in relationships of trust.

Perspectives of Women with Intellectual Disabilities Regarding Affective Sexual Relationships: a Systematic Literature Review

IntroductionDespite the recognition of the right to sexual identity and expression for all people, individuals with intellectual disabilities continue to face significant restrictions in these aspects of their lives. The prevailing myths and stereotypes surrounding their sexual-affective relationships place people with intellectual disabilities—especially women—in a position of great vulnerability.MethodsA systematic literature review was conducted, examining the content of the following databases: BASE, Dialnet, ERIC, La Referencia, Microsoft Academic, Redalyc, REDIB, Redined, Science Direct, Scopus, Web of Science, and World Wide Science. A total of 178 potentially relevant articles were identified, out of which 11 met the eligibility criteria. Finally, the themes covered in the articles were identified and analyzed.ResultsThe results obtained were classified into six categories: perceptions regarding sex and sexuality, experiences of abuse, views and experiences of relationships between couples, the LGTBIQ + community, knowledge about contraception and related experiences, and, finally, beliefs regarding gender scripts.ConclusionsThis study offers valuable insights into the knowledge (or lack thereof) and beliefs regarding sex and sexuality, experiences of abuse among women with intellectual disabilities, the lack of independence and external intervention, and the influence of traditional gender scripts. Furthermore, this research also establishes a theoretical foundation for future support resources and initiatives, as well as social and public implications.

Disdainful Hookups: a Powerful Social Determinant of Health.

The health consequences of gender violence, a global health and social problem, are increasingly studied. Among its roots, research has identified a coercive dominant discourse imposing the idea that masculinities and relationships marked by abuse and domination are more attractive than egalitarian ones. To prevent the health consequences of gender violence, it is necessary to understand the factors that lead many adolescents to fall into it. This study aims to identify the specific mechanisms by which the coercive dominant discourse manifests in the peer group and its consequences for adolescents. Forty-one 15- and 16-year-old female adolescents from three high schools in Barcelona participated in the study. Eight communicative discussion groups were conducted to deepen on participants' perceptions regarding how peer interactions promote the learning of attraction to violence in sexual-affective relationships. The results show that the participants perceived and experienced different types of coercion to have violent relationships in their peer group interactions. Those interactions fostered the reproduction of the association between sexual-affective attraction and males with aggressive attitudes and behaviors. Many peers coerce others to have disdainful hookups which have very negative health consequences for the victims, including suicidal ideation and committing suicide. Some peer groups become a risk developmental context for female adolescents as far as they foster the coercive dominant discourse, push some young women to engage in violent sporadic relationships, and even harass some others afterwards. This clarifies the importance of peer group-level interventions when addressing the health consequences of gender violence in adolescence.

Who promoted the nightlife of flirts? Freedom or capitalist bussiness?

There is scientific and rich literature about sexual-affective relationships in the nightlife. Some of the contributions analyze the freedom or the harassments in those relationships. Less has been researched about to what extent the origin and evolution of the promotion and extension of the participation of young people in the nightlife was motivated by their demand for freedom or by the nightlife business. This article presents results of the research about this matter within the framework of the Horizon 2020 Allinteract project. In addition to desk research and a literature review, the research includes interviews to participants in the young nightlife from 1960 until 2022. Besides the diversity of ages and genders of interviewees, the results show three coincidences among all of them: a) they and their friends paid more for less on drinks than in any other consumption they made; b) the motivation for this payment was the will to feel attractive for others; c) disdainful hookups were normalized among those who do not feel attractive enough.

“You Enjoy Talking about It More than Doing It”: Fake Narratives in Disdainful Relationships

Research has found that the coercive dominant discourse (CDD) can have a negative impact on girls’ sexual pleasure. In this vein, a previous study found that girls who described relationships under the CDD as exciting also recognized a lack of sexual pleasure in these. One of the elements underlying this apparent contradiction was an identified mismatch between what the participants had experienced in such relationships, characterized for being disdainful, and what they had told their friends. Nonetheless, more research is needed in order to better understand how girls’ narratives about their sexual-affective relationships differ from the ways in which they experienced them. The current study aims at identifying and analysing the presence of fake narratives in the interactions girls have with their peers regarding sexual-affective relationships. To this end, 10 communicative interviews were conducted with girls between 18 and 21 years of age. Results show that while participants recognize feeling a lack of pleasure in those disdainful relationships, they portrayed these as exciting when telling their peers about them, suppressing the negative feelings around them. These findings corroborate the presence of fake narratives in relation to disdainful relationships and bring new insights into the aspects these fabricated stories are built around.

Dialogic reconstruction of memories of violent sexual-affective relationships via dialogic gatherings of “Radical Love”

When a violent intimate relationship occurs, this experience becomes part of the person’s autobiographical memory. Given its prospective functions, the reconstruction of those memories of violent sexual-affective relationships could be an effective tool to prevent future revictimization. The study presented in this article examined the impact of a dialogic gathering of the Radical Love book on the reconstruction of memories of violent sexual- affective relationships. A sample of 48 young women, who had experienced at least one violent sexual affective-relationship were divided into an experimental (n = 24) and a control group (n = 24); they were asked to recall a violent sexual- affective relationship and write it down. The memory reports were collected in two stages. Between both reports, the experimental group read some chapters of the Radical Love book and engaged in a dialogic gathering. Memory quality was measured through the Memory Experiences Questionnaire (MEQ-SF). In the intervention group, the intensity of the emotion associated with the memory recall decreased, and participants became more critical towards the memory of what happened and more aware of the reactions and sensations experienced during the relationship. Dialogic gatherings with Radical Love can support the prevention of gender violence revictimization via transformative memory reconstruction.

Reducing Health Effects on Deceit in Heterosexual Sexual-Affective Relationships: The Impact of the Preventive Socialization Program (PSP).

Background: Health research has provided robust evidence of the negative effects caused by facing deceit in sexual-affective relationships. In this regard, several analyses have been conducted addressing psychological, family therapies, and educational interventions to improve marital problems. On the other hand, many investigations have addressed how the preventive socialization program (PSP), framed on the analysis of a dominant coercive discourse that is connected with the promotion of specific traditional masculine models, impacts on young people’s relationships free of violence. However, the link between deceit, health, and the PSP has not yet been analyzed. To cover this gap, a qualitative study has been performed with a methodology framed on the communicative approach. We enrolled heterosexual women and men aged 25 to 42 years old who have been in contact with the PSP and have experienced or know of any cases of deceit. Two different analytical categories emerged from the analysis, which distinguishes between exclusionary and transformative dimensions. Findings show that the majority of people involved in PSP were able to understand the reasons for deceit as well as to take decisions in their further sexual-affective relationships. Therefore, this study corroborates that access to scientific evidence in the framework of PSP is positively impacting interviewees’ health status.

Considerations about sexual affective interpersonal relationships in a confinement regime due to COVID-19

Considerations about sexual affective interpersonal relationships in a confinement regime due to COVID-19

The Consequences of Disdainful Hook-Ups for Later Egalitarian Relationships of Girls.

Introduction: There is extensive research about the consequences that toxic relationships with dominant masculinities have on different areas of women’s lives, including how they can influence future relationships they establish. Some of these women reproduce toxic relationships with dominant masculinities in their following relationships, and some women start to establish sexual-affective relationships with non-dominant masculinity models. However, less is known about the specific consequences in non-dominant masculinities who establish relationships with women who have not overcome the false memory of excitement regarding their toxic relationships. Methodology: In order to shed light on the consequences for non-dominant masculinities, eight communicative interviews were conducted with four women and four men. Results: The main findings indicate that those female participants who have kept an exciting memory of toxic relationships, when in an equal relationship, have attitudes of disdain towards non-dominant masculinities. They may ridicule them, not value their personal or intellectual abilities, talk down to them, and even negatively value their sexual aptitudes. Discussion: The application of the previous literature to our results leads to establishing the work on memories of relationships that have led to socialization in violent relationships as a preventive approach. Conclusion: The previously mentioned attitudes could generate health problems for non-dominant masculinities engaged in these relationships.

I Do It, but I Decide With Whom.

Social interactions and communication shape the desires and preferences of men and women. While it is true that some men have modified their behavior due to feminist women, the same happened with some women, who changed attraction patterns thanks to new alternative masculinities (NAM). This study examines the latter, focusing on social interactions mediated by language, as a crucial element to impact and change the desires of people. For this purpose, six autobiographical interviews were conducted with women aged 19–39 years, from two different countries and continents, paying attention to the narratives of their sexual-affective relationships. Using the communicative methodology, interactions have been analyzed from verbal communication and nonverbal communication, based on the consequences of the actions rather than intentionality. The results of this study show how dialogic communicative acts with NAMs influenced some women who first defended or justified actions of male perpetrators to later prefer to support female survivors against their perpetrators. Analysis reveals that communicative acts grounded in such language that enacted the desire of NAM for women of solidarity have shaped some memories of women of relationships with dominant traditional masculinities (DTM) and, ultimately, contributed to change their attraction and election patterns.

I Only Want Passionate Relationships: Are You Ready for That?

Research shows the existence of a coercive dominant discourse that associates attraction with violence and influences the socialization processes of many girls and women. According to previous studies, the coercive dominant discourse constitutes a risk factor for gender violence, as men with violent attitudes and behaviors are socially presented as attractive and exciting while egalitarian and non-aggressive men are considered “not sexy.” Yet fewer evidences indicate that men acting from the New Alternative Masculinities (NAM) model overcome this double standard through verbal and non-verbal communicative acts, which tell that they do not choose women acting under the coercive dominant discourse for a relationship because they are not “jumping for joy” when meeting them. Drawing from communicative daily life stories conducted to men and women from diverse sociocultural backgrounds and ages, this article presents how language is used in concrete heterosexual sexual-affective relationships. The analysis resulting from the fieldwork focus on how NAM men’s communicative acts with women set conditions of desire. This article shows evidence on how communicative acts of NAM empowerment incorporate “language of desire,” taking a clear position for egalitarian and passionate relationships. Implications for gender violence prevention are presented.

Making Choices in Discourse: New Alternative Masculinities Opposing the “Warrior’s Rest”

Psychology research on men studies, attractiveness, and partner preferences has evolved from the influence of sociobiological perspectives to the role of interactions in shaping election toward sexual–affective relationships and desire toward different kinds of masculinities. However, there is a scientific gap in how language and communicative acts among women influence the kind of partner they feel attracted to and in the reproduction of relationship double standards, like the myth of the “warrior’s rest” where female attractiveness to “bad boys” is encouraged or supported. Some women imitate “the warrior” behavior of men by choosing dominant traditional masculinities (DTM) to have “fun” with and oppressed traditional masculinities (OTM) for “rest” after the “fun” with DTM—choosing an OTM for a stable relationship, but perhaps without passion, while also feeling attraction toward DTM, a response which perpetuates the chauvinist double standard that the feminist movement has condemned when men behave in this sexist way. Through conducting a qualitative study with communicative daily life stories, this article explores, on the one hand, how language and social interaction among women can lead to the reproduction of the DTM role by women and, on the other hand, also how new alternative masculinities (NAM) offer an alternative by explicitly rejecting, through the language of desire, to be the rest for the female warrior, the second fiddle to any woman. This has the potential to become a highly attractive alternative to DTM. Findings provide new knowledge through the analysis of communicative acts and masculinities evidencing the importance of language uses in the reproduction of the double standards in gender relations and to understand how and why these practices are maintained and which kind of language uses can contribute to preventing them. Implications for research and interventions on preventive socialization of gender violence are discussed.

"No More Insecurities": New Alternative Masculinities' Communicative Acts Generate Desire and Equality to Obliterate Offensive Sexual Statements.

To justify attraction to Dominant Traditional Masculinities (DTM) and lack of attraction to non-aggressive men, some women defend opinions such as “there are no frigid women, only inexperienced men”. Such statements generate a large amount of sexual-affective insecurity in oppressed men and contribute to decoupling desire and ethics in sexual-affective relationships, which, in turn, reinforces a model of attraction to traditional masculinities that use coercion, thus perpetuating gender-based violence. New Alternative Masculinities (NAM) represent a type of masculinity that reacts to reverse such consequences with communicative acts, in which they state that women who support such discourses have never met a NAM man or have never experienced a successful sexual-affective relationship where passion, love, desire, and equality are all included. This article presents data analyzing these communicative acts (exclusory and transformative; language employed and consequences) to ultimately find the key to NAM communication that would contribute to changing attraction patterns. The data was collected using communicative daily life stories of three heterosexual white men and one heterosexual white woman, between the ages of 30 and 40. Findings emphasize the importance of self-confidence manifested by NAM men when communicating about sex and facing these offensive mottos in the presence of other men and women. Findings also demonstrate that supportive egalitarian relationships encourage the emergence of self-confidence in NAM men and that NAM men's self-confident communicative acts foster healthy relationships and obliterate coercive ones.

Gender violence among youth: an effective program of preventive socialization to address a public health problem.

Gender violence among youth is a worldwide public health problem. Youth is increasingly exposed to violence in sexual-affective relationships, both stable and sporadic, and the age of victimization decreases. This adverse life experience affects many areas of youth's life, such as education, social relationships and, especially, their physical and mental health, with consequences that can be very harmful in the short and long-term. This situation has given rise to many anti-violence programs for adolescents and youth, yet as some worldwide prestigious organizations, like the American Psychological Association, have pointed out, many of those programs do not work. In this article, we present a program of preventive socialization of gender violence addressed to adolescents that has proven effectiveness. The program was composed of seven interventions based on the social impact of the evidence on preventive socialization of gender violence. It was applied at a group level in groups of 15–16 years old teenagers in three high schools in Barcelona. The interventions were conducted over a period of one school year and shared the trait of discussing research evidence on preventive socialization of gender violence with the youth through egalitarian dialogue. These interventions have proved to have a preventive effect of gender violence victimization on the participating teenagers by raising their critical consciousness regarding a coercive dominant discourse in society that associates attractiveness and violence, supporting the transformation of their memories of violent sexual-affective relationships, and providing them tools to better analyze their and their friends' sexual-affective relationships along the lines of identifying gender violence and being more prepared to help others in this regard. The manuscript describes every intervention applied.

Dialogic Reconstruction of Memory: A Methodological Contribution Aimed at Social Impact on Youth’s Sexual-Affective Relationships

Methodologies of research aimed at achieving social impact, such as the Communicative Methodology (CM), have overcome the instrumental uses of language. Alongside these, research on memory has shown how this is not a static construct but one that is continuously evolving through social interaction. Research on youths’ sexual-affective relationships achieving social impact currently combines these two frameworks. However, from a methodological perspective, what advancements allow for the achievement of such an impact has not been explored yet. The current study contributes a new methodological contribution within the CM, the Dialogic Reconstruction of Memory (DRM). Six interviews were conducted with researchers studying sexual-affective relationships and participants in this kind of study. The results show how both interviewed researchers and participants identify the emergence of the DRM during and after communicative interviews. In turn, this leads to a series of modifications to communicative interviews and opens up possibilities for personal transformation. These findings open new avenues for research with social impact.

Female university students\u2019 preferences for different types of sexual relationships: implications for gender-based violence prevention programs and policies

BackgroundGender-based violence among young women is a growing problem worldwide. The consequences of this victimization have been well reported in the scientific literature, among which negative health outcomes stand out. The factors influencing this problem are many; one highlighted by research is socialization into a dominant coercive discourse that associates sexual-affective attraction to males with violent attitudes and behaviors, while in turn, such discourse empties males with egalitarian behaviors from sexual attractiveness. This coercive discourse may be shaping the sexual preferences of female youth. The current paper explores young women’s preferences for different types of sexual relationships and, more particularly, for what type of sexual affective relationships they coercively preferred men with violent attitudes and behavior.MethodsA quantitative, mixed-design vignette study was conducted with 191 college females in Spain. We focused the analysis only on responses about vignettes including narratives of men with violent attitudes and behaviors. In addition, we examined whether participants would report higher coerced preferences for violent men when asked about the coerced preferences of their female friends than when asked about their own preferences.ResultsOnly 28.95% of participants responded that their female friends would prefer a young man with violent behavior for a stable relationship, meanwhile 58.42% would do it for hooking up. When reporting about themselves, the difference was greater: 28.42% would prefer a young man with violent behavior for hooking up and just 5.78% for a stable relationship.ConclusionsThe dominant coercive discourse that links attractiveness to people with violent attitudes and behaviors may be explaining the results obtained in this study. The findings can help eliminate the stereotype largely adopted by some intervention and prevention programs which assume that gender-based violence occurs mainly in stable relationships, considering that falling in love is the reason that lead women to suffer from violence. Our results can also support health professionals and others serving young women to enhance their identification of gender violence victimization, as well as our findings point to the need to include the evidence of gender violence in sporadic relationships in prevention programs and campaigns addressed to young women.

Dialogic Feminist Gatherings: Impact of the Preventive Socialization of Gender-Based Violence on Adolescent Girls in Out-of-Home Care

Gender-based violence is a social scourge with an increasing incidence at younger ages. Many studies have focused on finding effective solutions for overcoming this problem; however, few studies have analyzed the contribution of interactive learning environments to gender-based violence prevention. This article attempts to fill this gap by showing the impact of Dialogic Feminist Gatherings on the preventive socialization against gender-based violence toward adolescent girls (aged 15–18) who are in out-of-home care and living in shelters—part of the institutional protection system—for different reasons that are primarily associated with violence and a lack of family protection. This qualitative study was conducted using the communicative methodology involving fifteen daily life stories that analyze the dialogues and reflections produced among the girls during Dialogic Feminist Gatherings. The results show the acquisition of competencies in aspects such as attraction, election, and equality in sexual-affective relationships. These dimensions, when developed through Dialogic Feminist Gatherings, are consistent with the scientific literature that characterized them as protective factors against gender-based violence. This study concludes by contrasting participants’ daily life reality with scientific evidence, which makes possible new methods of the preventive socialization against gender-based violence for adolescent girls in out-of-home care.

Changes in Tongue Kissing in Hook-Ups after COVID-19

A growing body of social and behavioral sciences studies are providing evidence on how COVID-19 is influencing changes in society and among individuals. A few of those studies focus on how it is affecting behavioral and habit changes in stable couples. Yet its influence on changes in hook-ups remains understudied. To contribute to filling this gap, this exploratory study analyzes changes related to tongue kissing in hook-ups promoted by increased awareness of tongue kissing certain people as a potential source of transmission. Through pre- and post-test questionnaires given to 20 girls (18–30 years old), potential changes in the memories of past tongue-kissing hook-ups and in intentions and perceptions towards future ones can be observed among 12 participants. The implications of these findings suggest not only how the new normal might affect tongue kissing in hook-ups among these girls but also how these girls might freely decide with whom to engage in sexual-affective relationships in the future.

The Impact of Alternative Audiovisual Products on the Socialization of the Sexual-Affective Desires of Teenagers

In the theories of communication and information, the way in which many audiovisual products have linked violence to sexual-affective relationships has been analyzed, especially using quantitative methodologies. The way in which such audiovisual products, which are a key socializing agent for teenagers, have an influence on teenagers’ sexual-affective relationships has also been analyzed. However, alternative audiovisual products also exist; such products mostly link attraction to egalitarian and nonviolent relationships. The present study aims at contributing to overcoming the attraction to violence that some audiovisual products might generate, therefore preventing gender violence among teenagers. With this purpose, this article provides a way of analyzing the impact that alternative audiovisual products have on teenagers’ sexual-affective desires using communicative methodology.