Abstract
Young women’s narratives of their sexual experiences occur amid conflicting cultural discourses of risk, abstinence, and moral
panic. Yet young women, as social actors, find ways to make meaning of their experiences through narrative. In this study,
we focused on adolescent girls’ (N = 98, age 12–17 years) narratives of their first experiences with oral sex. We document our unexpected findings of persistent
discourses of performance which echo newly emergent academic achievement discourses. Burns and Torre (Feminism & Psychology 15(1):21–26, 2005) argue that an extreme and high stakes focus on individual academic achievement in schools impoverishes young minds through
the “hollowing” of their sexualities. We present evidence that such influence also works in the opposite direction, with an
achievement orientation invading girls’ discourses of sexuality, “crowding out” possible narratives of pleasure, choice, and
mutuality with narratives of competence and skill usually associated with achievement and schooling. We conclude with policy
implications for the future development of “positive” sexuality narratives.
panic. Yet young women, as social actors, find ways to make meaning of their experiences through narrative. In this study,
we focused on adolescent girls’ (N = 98, age 12–17 years) narratives of their first experiences with oral sex. We document our unexpected findings of persistent
discourses of performance which echo newly emergent academic achievement discourses. Burns and Torre (Feminism & Psychology 15(1):21–26, 2005) argue that an extreme and high stakes focus on individual academic achievement in schools impoverishes young minds through
the “hollowing” of their sexualities. We present evidence that such influence also works in the opposite direction, with an
achievement orientation invading girls’ discourses of sexuality, “crowding out” possible narratives of pleasure, choice, and
mutuality with narratives of competence and skill usually associated with achievement and schooling. We conclude with policy
implications for the future development of “positive” sexuality narratives.
- Content Type Journal Article
- Pages 1-13
- DOI 10.1007/s13178-011-0062-1
- Authors
- April Burns, Program in Social-Personality Psychology, The Graduate Center, City University of New York, 365 Fifth Avenue, New York, NY 10016, USA
- Valerie A. Futch, Youth-Nex, Curry School of Education, University of Virginia, 405 Emmet Street So., PO Box 400281, Charlottesville, VA 22904-4281, USA
- Deborah L. Tolman, Hunter College School of Social Work and The Graduate Center, City University of New York, 129 East 79th Street, New York, NY 10075, USA
- Journal Sexuality Research and Social Policy
- Online ISSN 1553-6610
- Print ISSN 1868-9884