Successful Communicative Focus Groups With Teenagers and Young People

Abstract

ArticleThis article presents an analysis of the contributions of communicative focus groups to the construction of scientific knowledge on gender violence, more specifically on the phenomenon of the mirage of upward mobility in affective and sexual relations among young people, identified as one of the causes of gender violence. First, we review the different research methods for analyzing the causes of gender violence among young people, identifying gaps in the field and adding new elements to the debate. Second, we introduce the concept of the "mirage of upward mobility" and the research that substantiates it. Finally, we discuss contributions from two communicative focus groups to the analysis of the reality and consequences of the "mirage." AbstractThe concept of the mirage of upward mobility, identified as one of the causes of gender violence, has been analyzed in depth through different communicative fieldwork techniques that were designed dialogically. The development of each of these techniques has been crucial to identifying the roots of the phenomenon. This article addresses the implementation of communicative focus groups comprising adolescent girls and young people (aged 14-18 and 18-25) by highlighting different parts of the research process: (a) how the groups were configured and how the participants were selected, (b) the identification of preexisting barriers to discussing the issue and the different possible reactions, (c) how evidence from the scientific community was introduced to the groups, and (d) how the barriers to identifying the mirage of upward mobility can be overcome through dialogue within the focus groups.

Evidence of Gender Violence Negative Impact on Health as a Lever to Change Adolescents’ Attitudes and Preferences towards Dominant Traditional Masculinities

“…At the same time, the contrary occurs, and the girls’ status and attractiveness decrease. It has been identified as one of the causes of gender violence [ 18 ].…”

I Do It, but I Decide With Whom

“…This may happen especially considering they might have had some kind of sexual-affective experience with DTM, and their peers reinforce this idea for them ( Castro and Mara, 2014 ). Nonetheless, research studies in the area of preventive socialization of GBV have examined such phenomenon and described it as a “mirage of upward mobility” ( Rosell et al, 2014 ). This concept describes the misunderstanding reality experienced by a girl or woman who believes she increases her attractiveness by having sexual-affective relationships with DTM and when she behaves so to draw their attention, while the contrary happens and she uses to become less attractive for DTM and for other men.…”

“…Communicative acts are a key element in the analysis of the influence of the dominant coercive discourse. In this sense, the concept of “mirage of upward mobility” has also been analyzed ( Rosell et al, 2014 ). It is defined as the erroneous perception that some girls have developed when they believe that, if they have a sexual relationship with a boy with violent attitudes, this fact increases her attractiveness or her status, while research studies have shown that the opposite actually happens, that is, her status decreases.…”

Free Women's Contributions to Working-Class Women's Sexual Education during the Spanish Civil War (1936–1939) and Beyond

“…This conception of free love is shared by the work being conducted on the preventive socialization of gender violence to overcome what is known as the mirage of upward mobility (Oliver, 2010(Oliver, -2012Rué, Martínez, Flecha, & Álvarez, 2014). As a result of years of research about the socialization processes of the models of attraction of adolescents, the mirage of upward mobility has been identified as the wrong perception that some girls have when they associate that having a sexualaffective relationship with a boy who is a model of traditional masculinity in which imposition and contempt prevail leads to an increase of her status and attractiveness, when what actually happens is that her status and attractiveness decrease (Oliver, 2010(Oliver, -2012.…”

“…The girls' attractiveness and status within their group of peers decrease. If they have more relationships, it is not because their peer group considers them to be more attractive than before but rather because they have been qualified as "easy" girls (Oliver, 2010(Oliver, -2012Rué et al, 2014).…”