Tussen norm en verlangen
Year: 2023
Type: article
Abstract: The study, conducted in the Netherlands, examines the experiences of 55 young people from cultural communities in which premarital sex is not allowed. Participants come from different ethnic and religious backgrounds and include both men and women. The study explores how these young individuals navigate the expectations surrounding virginity and the norms of sexual segregation. Both men and women observe gender-dependent rules and feel controlled by their environment in their romantic lives. However, the paper shows that the rules are stricter for women. There is a group that observes the virginity commandment, a group that rejects this commandment, and an in-between group. We understand the sexual behaviour of the intermediate group as a strategy to navigate the boundaries of what is permissible by distinguishing between sexual intercourse as forbidden “real” sex and permissible other sexual activities. Interestingly, respondents never refer to a Dutch discourse on sexuality or emulate Dutch people without a migration background. Sex education should acknowledge conservative sexual moralities and encourage all young people to think critically about the sexual values they have been taught.
Source: Tijdschrift voor Genderstudies
Institution: Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam
Language: Dutch
Subfield: General Health Professions
Field: Health Professions
Domain: Health Sciences
Open Access status: hybrid
OpenAlex ID: W4380049287