“Consent is Good and Girls Really Appreciate it": A Content Analysis of Sexual Consent Behaviors

• In Event: New Directions in Research on Sexual Victimization

Abstract

In the United States, emerging adulthood is a period between adolescence and adulthood in which individuals experience major social changes. In the context of emerging adulthood, college provides young people a safety net of sorts, allowing students to experience the freedom of adulthood with limited responsibility. Despite this “safe” haven, college campuses tend to have high rates of sexual assault. The extent to which young adults in college not only understand but exercise their understanding of consent is not fully known. This study seeks to explore young college students’ understanding of consent and consent behaviors through a content analysis of their rationale behind decision points in a choose-your-own adventure type paradigm that tests sexual consent.

Authors

• AnaCristina Bedoya, University of Massachusetts Lowell

• Joseph Gonzales, University of Massachusetts Lowell