{"id":139542,"date":"2022-05-02T14:57:43","date_gmt":"2022-05-02T12:57:43","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.erasmusmagazine.nl\/en\/?p=139542"},"modified":"2025-12-19T11:26:16","modified_gmt":"2025-12-19T10:26:16","slug":"students-are-struggling-with-sexual-communication-checking-seems-pointless-to-me-if-the-other-person-obviously-wants-to-go-further","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.erasmusmagazine.nl\/en\/2022\/05\/02\/students-are-struggling-with-sexual-communication-checking-seems-pointless-to-me-if-the-other-person-obviously-wants-to-go-further\/","title":{"rendered":"Students are struggling with sexual communication: ‘Checking seems pointless to me if the other person obviously wants to go further’"},"content":{"rendered":"

Six out of ten students who took part in the EM survey on sexual harassment think that you should stop sexual behaviour if you are not given explicit permission to continue. A total of 293 EUR students participated in the survey.<\/p>\n

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All students in the survey consider non-consensual penetration to be transgressive behaviour. The same applies to oral sex, kissing and touching without consent. In addition, students believe that catcalling on the street (86 percent) and deliberately touching someone else\u2019s bottom, breasts or crotch in a bar (96 percent) is also transgressive behaviour. Repeatedly making comments about someone\u2019s appearance and repeatedly making sexual references and jokes are also unacceptable, according to 80 percent of the students.<\/p>\n\t

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In a series of articles, EM highlights sexual transgressive behaviour among students. This is part 4.<\/p>\n

Part 1:\u00a0Dire cases are no exception for sexual harassment among students<\/a><\/p>\n

Part 2: \u2018It feels like I\u2019m the one being punished for the assault, not the perpetrator\u2019<\/a><\/p>\n

Part 3: University has limited insight into sexual harassment among students<\/a><\/p>\n

Part 4: What students find sexually transgressive<\/em><\/p>\n\n\t<\/div>\n

Broad definition<\/h2>

Students tend to have a broad definition of what sexually transgressive behaviour is. This is the conclusion drawn by assistant professor Samira van Bohemen, a researcher at the Erasmus Love Lab. Of the 23 behaviours studied in the survey, ranging from non-consensual penetration to sexually tinged jokes, students ticked the boxes across the whole spectrum. Only types of behaviour directed towards their own partner aren\u2019t considered transgressive, such as sexually tinged comments (9 percent) and sending sexually explicit photos and videos (4 percent). On some behaviours there is slightly less consensus. Around four in ten students consider kissing or touching without the explicit consent of both parties to be transgressive.<\/p>\n

\u201cI have the idea that this generation of students has a much broader view on sexual harassment than, for example, my generation\u201d, says Van Bohemen. According to her, this is partly due to developments in society, like the #metoo <\/em>movement. \u201cSuch movements have woken people up to the fact that even minor forms of undesirable behaviour, such as sexually tinged jokes or comments about your sexuality, constitute transgressive behaviour.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\t

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Read more<\/h2>\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\t