Positive-focused Sex Education in the Netherlands An analysis of two different information sessions; the adolescent opinion

Abstract

The aim of this study was to investigate how adolescents experience attention for pleasure in sexual education from Qpido through three objectives: 1. Investigate how attention is paid to pleasure in the material. 2. Whether adolescents experience the lessons as positive-focused. 3. Whether positive appreciation contributes to higher evaluation of the lessons. In this cross-sectional study (N = 73, M age = 14) mixed methods (content analysis/questionnaires) were used. The results of the qualitative part show that pleasure is included in almost every theme that is discussed during the lessons. In the theme social media there can be more attention to the pleasurable sides of online sexual behavior. The general message of the lessons is: “it is okay to be who you are”. The results of the quantitative part brought to light that explicit mentioning of pleasure is an important factor in the degree of positive appreciation of adolescents. In addition, pleasure also plays a role in grading of sexual education by youngsters. It can be concluded that Qpido provides adolescents with a realistic, positive and pleasurable view of sexuality, and that pleasure is an, if not the most, important factor of positive-focused sexual education.