A young girl who has had sex for the first time is unsure if it's normal for her breasts to have turned blue.
This is one of the experiences described in a Swedish-Norwegian study on sexualized violence and violations in young people's close relationships, from the National Knowledge Centre on Violence and Traumatic Stress in Oslo.
I thought we had agreed that women have the right to set boundaries around their own bodies. But we really need to talk about this, because young girls are very unsure about it, says Carolina Överlien.
Grey areas
The researchers have interviewed hundreds of young people about grey areas. What is actually an assault? When does a positive and wonderful experience turn into something else?
For many of the young people who participated in the study, it was their first time being in a relationship or having a "flirt" with someone. The result of the study shows, according to Överlien, a paradox.
Young people know something about consent and say the "right things". But when you talk deeper, and maybe ask questions based on a case, it reveals attitudes that I thought we had left long ago, she says.
The image is shared by Erika Gyllenswärd, operations developer and expert on violence in close relationships at the Police Authority.
Many young people do not know what a healthy relationship looks like and think they have to do or agree to certain things. The rough porn becomes sex education and they think that's how it's supposed to be, she says, and points to the importance of increased competence among both children and adults.
Changed curriculum
In 2022, the curriculum for elementary school was changed, and sex education is now supposed to focus more on values and questions about voluntariness and consent.
This is the best thing that has happened in a long time, and something that has been discussed for years. But you get worried about how much it is implemented in everyday life, that's often where it fails, says Carolina Överlien.
She emphasizes that it is in school that preventive work must take place, and that teachers need to receive sufficient education and sufficient conditions to be able to take on the task, in an often pressured daily life.
Moreover, she believes that parents need to step forward. Many young people are very alone in their thoughts and want parents who knock on the door.
Parents often keep a distance, out of respect. But as a parent, you need to be there, ask the tough questions, and tolerate being rejected. That's your job, she says.
In 2018, an amendment to the penal code's rape paragraph was introduced, commonly referred to as the "consent law".
The amendment means that the starting point for whether an act should be considered rape is whether there was consent or not.
A new crime, negligent rape, was also introduced. This means that one can be held responsible if one has been grossly negligent and carried out a sexual act despite understanding, or should have understood, that there was a risk that the other person did not participate voluntarily.
A type of situation that can be affected by the regulations is when initially voluntary sexual activity has become involuntary, for example, after one person has become rough or moved on to new sexual acts that the other person has not consented to.
The consent law was welcomed by many when it was introduced, but also met criticism regarding lack of legal certainty.
Source: The Equality Agency and Brå
The study was conducted by a group of researchers in Sweden and Norway.
The project leader was Carolina Överlien, professor at the National Centre for Women's Safety, Uppsala University, and researcher at the National Knowledge Centre on Violence and Traumatic Stress in Oslo.
The researchers conducted 12 focus group interviews with a total of 63 young people. The young people were recruited, among other things, through schools and social media. Individual interviews were also held with a total of 34 young people who had been exposed to violence and 19 young people who had committed sexual offenses.
The research study also included, among other things, interviews with school staff and reviews of documents in cases where young people had been convicted of sexual offenses.
Source: «Nesten innafor», Seksuell vold og krenkelser i unges nære relasjoner, Rapport nr 3, 2024. Published by the National Knowledge Centre on Violence and Traumatic Stress in Norway.
