Effectiveness of social media-based sexuality education "Her Gaze" using a feminist approach among young adults in China

Abstract

More than half of Chinese young women have experienced two or three types of violence in their lives. Although the existing literature has provided evidence of the impact of feminist interventions on gender power, there is a lack of implementation and evaluation of such interventions in China. This study examines the effectiveness of a social media-based sexuality education intervention using a feminist approach to promote gender equality and prevent sexual violence among Chinese young adults. The research comprises three components: a systematic literature review (SLR), a qualitative study, and a randomized controlled trial (RCT). The SLR identified significant gaps in current sexuality education and the potential of feminist approaches to challenge traditional gender norms while enhancing knowledge, attitudes, and behaviors related to sexual violence. Qualitative interviews were then carried out with ten sex educators and 18 young adults to explore their perceptions of social media-based sexuality education using a feminist approach in Chinese context. Results showed that we need to address issues such as internal conflicts within the feminist discourse, unbalanced gender distribution in attendance in sexuality education courses, social stigmatization towards feminism, and political constraints on promoting gender and sexuality issues in China. The insights gained from the two studies informed the design of a culturally adapted intervention. The RCT, conducted between May 2023 and March 2024, recruited 422 participants aged 18-29 from four online sex education organizations. Results showed that the intervention was effective in reducing Rape Myth Acceptance (RMA) as evidenced by a statistically significant intervention main effect and also a significant intervention-by-time interaction effect. Participants who received the intervention exhibited a significant reduction in the acceptance of rape myths compared to the control group at postintervention and three months. Among the intervention group, there was a significant decrease in sociocultural attitudes towards the appearance and increase in permissive attitudes toward sex between baseline and intervention, but the decrease did not sustain at the three-month follow-up. Additionally, there was a significant decrease in the instrumentality aspect of sexual attitudes between baseline and three-month follow-up. Further analysis revealed that participant characteristics, such as gender, sexual orientation, relationship status, and overall satisfaction with the intervention, may have influenced the intervention’s effectiveness. Feedback from participants indicated high levels of satisfaction with the educational materials, with many reporting significant transformations in their understanding and expression of gender and sexual identities as a result of the program. In conclusion, our findings suggested that social media-based sexuality education using a feminist approach as an effective strategy for challenging harmful beliefs related to rape, rejecting objectification of individuals and fostering a shift towards more consensual attitudes toward sexuality among Chinese young adults.