TY - JOUR
T1 - Our relationships, our values, our culture
T2 - Aboriginal young men’s perspectives about sex, relationships and gender stereotypes in Australia
AU - Graham, Simon
AU - Martin, Kacey
AU - Beadman, Mitchell
AU - Doyle, Michael
AU - Bolt, Reuben
N1 - Funding Information:
This paper was written as part of the Australian Research Council Linkage Project LP170100190 Fostering the Sexual Well-Being of Aboriginal Young People. The Centre for Social Research in Health receives support from UNSW Arts, Design and Architecture, the Australian Department of Health, and other external funders. The Australian National Health and Medical Research Council through Investigator grants supported the salaries of Simon Graham (grant number 2009727)
and Michael Doyle (grant number 1193618).
PY - 2022/2/22
Y1 - 2022/2/22
N2 - Studies of Aboriginal young people have often followed a deficit approach depicting them as ‘risky’ and in need of help. In contrast, this study took a strengths-based approach and focussed on what Aboriginal young people value, how they stay safe and how their culture impacts their lives. 16 Aboriginal men aged 16 to 24 years were interviewed in Sydney, Australia. We examined Aboriginal young men’s perspectives about relationships, sex and gender. Interviews were conducted by young Aboriginal men in 2019 and 2020. Overall, four features of positive sexual and romantic relationships were discussed: (1) love, connection and support; (2) enjoyment and fun; (3) responsibility, safety and consent; and 4) honesty, respect and trust. Additionally, three topics related to gender roles: (1) becoming a man; (2) sex as a masculine achievement; and (3) inequality and gender stereotypes. Our study suggests that Aboriginal young men are exploring sexual and romantic relationships, and although they value enjoyment and fun, they are aware of broader issues such as consent and respect. The young men acknowledged gender stereotypes faced by young women. Our results could be used by future school safe sex education programmes to better meet the needs of Aboriginal young men.
AB - Studies of Aboriginal young people have often followed a deficit approach depicting them as ‘risky’ and in need of help. In contrast, this study took a strengths-based approach and focussed on what Aboriginal young people value, how they stay safe and how their culture impacts their lives. 16 Aboriginal men aged 16 to 24 years were interviewed in Sydney, Australia. We examined Aboriginal young men’s perspectives about relationships, sex and gender. Interviews were conducted by young Aboriginal men in 2019 and 2020. Overall, four features of positive sexual and romantic relationships were discussed: (1) love, connection and support; (2) enjoyment and fun; (3) responsibility, safety and consent; and 4) honesty, respect and trust. Additionally, three topics related to gender roles: (1) becoming a man; (2) sex as a masculine achievement; and (3) inequality and gender stereotypes. Our study suggests that Aboriginal young men are exploring sexual and romantic relationships, and although they value enjoyment and fun, they are aware of broader issues such as consent and respect. The young men acknowledged gender stereotypes faced by young women. Our results could be used by future school safe sex education programmes to better meet the needs of Aboriginal young men.
KW - consent
KW - culture
KW - First Nations
KW - gender
KW - Indigenous
KW - relationships
KW - sex
KW - youth
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=85125391045&partnerID=8YFLogxK
U2 - 10.1080/13691058.2022.2039776
DO - 10.1080/13691058.2022.2039776
M3 - Article
C2 - 35192437
AN - SCOPUS:85125391045
SP - 1
EP - 17
JO - Culture, Health and Sexuality
JF - Culture, Health and Sexuality
SN - 1369-1058
ER -