Unraveling the Slut Narrative: Gender Constraints on Adolescent Girls' Sexual Decision-Making |
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| Authors: | Aleza K Summit Jenifer DeAtley Andrew Levack |
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| Institution: | 1. RHEDI/ Montefiore Medical Center, New York, NY, USA;2. EngenderHealth, Austin, TX, USA;3. St. David's Foundation, Austin, TX, USA |
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| Abstract: | Limited research exists on the slut labeling process, a key means of enforcing rules around appropriate female sexuality. This study explores that process through qualitative interviews with 44 adolescent girls in Travis County, Texas. Labeling girls as sluts or hos was pervasive and was based on a number of factors beyond sexual behavior, including dress, friendships with boys, or jealousy from other girls. Responses depicted a narrow space in which girls functioned, bound at one end by limited agency and at the other by pervasive vulnerability. There was consensus about the negative consequences of being labeled. Most girls held mixed opinions about the slut labeling process: this may reflect their attempts to push back against a system that entraps them. These findings suggest that prevention and sex education programs must explicitly address slut labeling as well as other gender narratives that impede healthy sexual development. |
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