EXAMINING THE CONCEPTUALIZATION OF SEXUAL CONSENT AMONG YOUTHS FROM RENTAL-FLATS COMMUNITY IN SINGAPORE

Abstract

This qualitative exploratory study aimed to explore how young people from rental-flats community in Singapore understand and communicate sexual consent. While there has been an increased focus on consent promotion in Singapore, there is a paucity of information about sexual consent behaviours on the ground, especially among this community of youths. There has been substantial evidence in literature that gender and sociocultural norms play huge roles in influencing sexual consent communication. Hence, this study utilizes the feminist orientation of the sexual script perspective to approach this topic. Qualitative semi-structured one-to-one interviews were carried out with youths from rental-flats community. Seven distinct themes emerged across participants' responses: (a) definitions of sexual consent, (b) communicating sexual consent, (c) endorsement of sexual double standard, (d) obtaining sex as male conquest, (e) women are responsible for miscommunication, (f) deviation from the traditional sexual script, and (g) sources of ideas of sexual consent. The study concluded that sexual consent negotiations among youths are complicated and constrained by implicit pressures generated by gendered norms and expectations, making it difficult to practice direct, explicit consent communication. The findings in the study were used to generate implications for future research, social workers and other practitioners working with youths, activists, and school sexual education curriculum with the intention to facilitate healthy sexual consent attitudes and practices among youths.