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

Abstract

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.

Alternative Friendships to Improve Men’s Health Status. The Impact of the New Alternative Masculinities’ Approach

“…For instance, participants in the research confirmed having fewer problems with their weight, some of them have decided to not smoke, and there are other interviewees who are happier now than before being involved in Men in Dialogue. Concerning the shaping of conversations and interactions addressing favorable practices [ 56 , 57 ], the fieldwork illustrates the importance of establishing relationships, framed on support and trust that foster healthy practices and reinforce emotional well-being. Thus, the results show the interconnection between this emotional well-being and men’s physical health.…”

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

“…In this article, we have shared a program of seven interventions framed by the research line of preventive socialization of gender violence that were applied as part of the MEMO4LOVE Project in Spain. We explain it here as the program has already proven to be successful in generating transformative changes in dimensions that are involved in gender violence victimization, as already reported and published in indexed scientific journals [28] , [33] , [34] .…”

“…This article is not focused on the impact of the program, which is being already reported in other scientific articles [28] ; thus the research data collected throughout the research project is not shared here. We share the program of interventions given the efficacy that actions grounded in the scientific evidence from the research line on preventive socialization of gender violence have already demonstrated [33] , [34] , including this program. Other publications [28] ; have shown that this exact program of interventions contributed to raising the participant adolescents' consciousness regarding the presence of the dominant coercive discourse in their life, aided their better understanding of sexual-affective behaviors, thoughts and feelings, and supported the modification of sexual preferences in some female adolescents in a direction of rejecting violent males.…”

“…While this seems obvious, many programs of emotional education are far from being evidence-based and thus do not contribute to tackle gender violence among teenagers, as associations like APA have posed [24] . The program we report here is an effective response from the line of research of preventive socialization of gender violence, which had already demonstrated the effectiveness (social impact) of interventions grounded in the evidence collected in this research line [33] , [50] .…”

Believers, Attractiveness and Values

“…At the individual level, neuroscience has also evidenced how kindness fosters a healthy brain (Galante et al 2014) and leads to relationships characterized by pleasure and desire (Racionero-Plaza et al 2020). When Racionero-Plaza and colleagues studied a specific intervention focused on supporting the free reconstruction of mental and affective models of attractiveness, they found dialogue to be an essential tool for achieving this aim (Salceda et al 2020).…”