Sense about sex: media, sex advice, education and learning

Abstract

The media are widely acknowledged as important in sex and relationship education, but they are usually associated with 'bad' effects on young people in contrast to the 'good' knowledge represented by more informational and educational formats. In this paper we look at sex advice giving in newspapers, magazines and television in the UK, in sex advice books and in online spaces for sexual learning. We examine some of the limitations of the information provided, consider the challenges for sex advice in the contemporary context, and outline some of the opportunities for academics, researchers, therapists, sex educators and activists to contribute productively to sex advice giving and sexual learning more generally.

Sexuality Education in the Digital Era: Intrinsic and Extrinsic Predictors of Online Sexual Information Seeking Among Youth

“…With the exception of sexual orientation (Charest, Kleinplatz, & Lund, 2016;Mitchell et al, 2014), other variables that relate to youth's intrinsic needs and motivations, such as sexual curiosity, need for sexual information (for instance about sexual problems) and sexual (self-) views, have not yet been investigated in relation to online sexual information seeking. Moreover, it has also been suggested that youth turn online for sexuality education when the messages that they receive from offline sources (i.e., parents and schools) are not tailored to their personal needs and preferences (Attwood et al, 2015;Doornwaard et al, 2017;McKee, 2012), but empirical research on the role of such extrinsic factors is scarce and mostly qualitative in nature (McKee, 2012). As a result, we do not know to what extent online sexual information seeking is predicted by intrinsic factors and/or extrinsic factors.…”

Teachers’ conflicting cultural schemas of teaching comprehensive school-based sexuality education in Kampala, Uganda

“…Nowadays the media and peers have become more important sources for young people's information on sexuality issues (Darabi et al 2008;Munthali and Zulu 2007). Although these information sources can be valuable, their quality can be inconsistent or poor, and they can provide conflicting messages and problematic representations of sex (Attwood et al 2015;Cheetham 2014; UNESCO, UNAIDS, UNFPA, UNICEF, and WHO 2009).…”

Beyond risk and safety? Identifying shifts in sex education advice targeted at young women

“…Much work on sex education has shown how the media create and reinforce discourses around sexuality which tend to be conservative, judgmental and shaming (Attwood et al, 2015: 529). Research on magazines shows that they reinforce oppressive notions of femininity and influence what is considered normative sexual practice (Bachechi and Hall, 2015; Farvid and Braun, 2014; McRobbie, 1996; Reviere and Byerly, 2013).…”

“…These traditional discourses include ‘compulsory heterosexuality’, whereby heterosexuality is explicitly privileged over other forms of sexuality (Fine, 1998; Rich, 1980: 632). Alternative sexualities are problematised, minimised, absent or treated as ‘deviant’, except in the case of resources specifically targeted at queer audiences (Attwood et al, 2015; Clarke, 2009; Jackson, 2005a; Kehily, 1999b). There is an overwhelming focus on pregnancy, involving the assumption that sex is equivalent to penile–vaginal intercourse.…”